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THE  LARGER  VISION 


BY 
A.  R.  LAMBERT 


BOSTON 

SHERMAN,  FRENCH  &  COMPANY 
1913 


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SHEBMAN, 


TO  THE  "HELPMEET"  OF  THE  YEARS  OF  A 
BUSY  LIFE,  WHOSE  WISE  COUNSELS  HAVE 
FURNISHED  SOLUTION  TO  VEXED  PROBLEMS; 
WHOSE  FAITH  IN  HER  HUSBAND  HAS  STIMU- 
LATED THE  HIGHEST  ENDEAVORS:  WHOSE 
CHEERFUL  SPIRIT  HAS  DRIVEN  DULL  CARE 
TO  THE  WINDS;  WHOSE  LOVE  HAS  BEEN  AS 
AN  EVANGEL  OF  HOPE;  WHOSE  UTTER  CONSE- 
CRATION TO  THE  COMFORTS  OF  THE  ROOF- 
TREE  HAS  MADE  THE  HOME  A  RETREAT  FROM 
THE  TOILS  AND  INQUIETUDES  OF  LIFE— 
TO 

MY  WIFE 
I  DEDICATE  THIS  BOOK 


FOREWORD 

Through  the  years  of  my  ministry  I  have 
sought  to  be  a  close  observer  of  men  and  things 
—  noting  the  trend  of  the  times. 

I  have  not  failed  to  appreciate  the  introduc- 
tion of  multiplied,  multiform  labor-saving  de- 
vices ;  the  increase  in  philanthropic  movements 
— •  men  of  large  means  who  have  caught  the 
spirit  of  the  declaration  "  the  time  is  near  at 
hand  when  it  will  be  regarded  a  sin  for  a  man 
to  die  rich,"  a  sentiment  in  keeping  with  the 
thought  of  the  Master,  who  declared :  "  The 
poor  ye  have  always  with  you  " —  reference  be- 
ing had  to  the  unfortunate  and  impotent  of 
earth;  the  gradual  disappearance  of  the  hated 
system  of  "  caste,"  and  the  swinging  of  the  pen- 
dulum of  human  thought  in  the  direction  of  the 
democracy  of  the  people. 

The  introduction  of  reform  movements,  look- 
ing towards  the  elimination  of  vice,  graft,  and 
greed  in  the  body  politic ;  the  placing  of  the 
stamp  of  public  disapproval  upon  the  practice 
of  polygamous  cohabitation,  the  "  white  slave 
traffic,"  and  the  utter  annihilation  of  the  great- 
est curse  of  the  ages,  the  liquor  traffic;  the 


FOREWORD 

opening,  one  by  one,  of  the  doors  of  the  heathen 
world,  admitting  the  ambassadors  of  Jesus 
Christ;  the  displacement  of  monarchial  forms 
of  government  by  newly  born  republics  —  all 
these  things  have  branded  as  false  the  state- 
ment, oft  repeated,  that  "  the  world  is  growing 
worse,"  and  stressed  the  truth  that  the  world  is 
growing  better. 

"  The  apostles  of  despondency  and  com- 
plaint "  are  retreating  before  the  oncoming 
spirit  of  optimism :  "  God  is  in  his  heaven,  the 
world's  all  right." 

As  a  result,  in  large  part,  of  these  observa- 
tions, I  have  become  an  out-and-out  optimist, 
and  have  found  myself  possessed  of  the  larger 
vision ;  my  study  of  the  word  of  God  has  led  me 
to  see  and  feel  that  God  is  not  "  a  blind  force, 
making  for  righteousness,"  but  an  all-wise  and 
loving  heavenly  Father,  who  takes  note  of  the 
end  of  life  from  the  beginning,  making  the  am- 
plest provision  therefor. 

The  old  book  has  thus  become  a  new  book  to 
me,  for  I  have  found  myself  crying  out,  again 
and  again,  in  the  language  of  the  inspired 
writer :  "  Open  thou  mine  eyes  that  I  may  be- 
hold wondrous  things  out  of  thy  law."  And 
as  a  result  the  sublime  symbolism  of  the  Bi- 
ble has  assumed,  not  a  poetical  significance  — 
rather  the  opening  up  of  new  vistas  of  eternal 
verities. 


FOREWORD 

Red  seas  of  opposition  have  but  emphasized 
passageways  over  which  God's  children  may 
pass  "  dry  shod."  Fiery  furnaces  have  but 
stressed  the  keeping  power  of  God.  Mountain 
tops,  surrounded  by  the  horses  and  chariots 
of  the  enemy,  have  furnished  an  emphasis  of  the 
need  of  "  opened  eyes,"  and  the  recognition  of 
the  fact  that  "  they  that  be  for  us  are  more  than 
they  which  be  against  us."  Storm-tossed  Gen- 
es sarets  have  but  directed  my  thought  to  the 
presence  of  Him  whose  voice  rocks  the  winds 
and  waves  of  adverse  experiences  to  sleep. 
Hungry  multitudes  have  become  suggestive  of 
that  multiplying  power,  providing  enough  and 
to  spare.  The  day  seems  drawing  nigh  when 
the  words  of  the  poet-prophet  shall  be  fulfilled 
—  when 

"  Jesus  shall  reign,  where'er  the  sun 
Does  his  successive  journeys  run; 
His  kingdom  spread  from  shore  to  shore, 
Till  moons  shall  wax  and  wane  no  more." 

In  a  word,  running  through  all  the  messages 
of  my  ministry,  of  which  these  contained  in  this 
volume  are  a  part,  will  be  found  "  the  golden 
thread  of  optimism,"  the  larger  vision;  and  in 
the  hope  that  others  may  catch  this  spirit,  I 
send  them  forth  trusting  and  unafraid. 

A.  R.  L. 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

I  THE  LARGER  VISION 1 

II  THE  IMAGERY  OF  THE  BIBLE  .      .      .17 

III  UNSEEN   FORCES 33 

IV  WITH    STARS   AS   TEACHERS     .      .      .51 

V  THE  REGAL  SPIRIT 67 

VI  SPIRITUAL  POISE 83 

VII  THE   VICARIOUS   CONTRIBUTION     .      .     99 

VIII  THE  SUPREMACY  OF  JESUS  CHRIST     .    117 

IX  "THE  LAND  OF  ROOM  ENOUGH"     .    133 


THE  LARGER  VISION 


"  The  inventor  multiplies  the  faculties  of  life, 
but  the  poet  makes  life  better  worth  living." 

—  CURTIS] 

"  There  is  but  one  Raphael,  and  no  second ;  but 
a  thousand  lesser  artists,  looking  up  to  him,  are 
lifted  to  his  level/' 

—  HIL-LIS. 

"  Truth  tyrannizes  over  the  unwilling  members 
of  the  body.  No  man  need  be  deceived  who  will 
study  the  changes  of  expression.  When  a  man 
speaks  the  truth,  in  the  spirit  of  truth,  his  eye  is  as 
clear  as  the  heavens.  When  he  has  base  ends  and 
speaks  falsely,  the  eye  is  muddy  and  sometimes 
asquint." 

—  EMERSON. 

"  But  we  all,  with  open  face  beholding  as  in  a 
glass  the  glory  of  the  Lord,  are  changed  into  the 
same  image  from  glory  to  glory,  even  as  by  the 
spirit  of  the  Lord." 

—  ST.  PAUL. 


I 

THE  LARGER  VISION 

"  Among  a  thousand  men  who  talk,  but  one 
thinks;  among  a  thousand  men  who  think,  but  one 
sees." 

Out  from  this  comparatively  small  number  of 
men  who  see,  have  gone  the  builders  of  nations, 
the  founders  of  empires,  the  discoverers  of  new 
worlds,  the  prophets  of  God,  the  benefactors  of 
the  race,  and  the  Saviour  of  a  lost  world ;  in  a 
word,  the  sum  total  of  human  success  and 
human  happiness  is  bound  up  in  the  lives  of  men 
who  see  —  who  have  the  larger  vision. 

It  goes  without  saying,  therefore,  that  one  of 
the  most  inspiring  pastimes  is  that  of  tracing 
the  footsteps  of  these  leaders  of  men. 

I.    WORLD  LEADERS 

Over  yonder  I  see  one  of  these  world  leaders 
gazing  upon  jets  of  steam,  emanating  from  a 
teakettle. 

A  thousand  other  men  had  noted  the  same 
thing;  had  thought  about  it,  and  spoken  of  it, 

in  commonplace  terms,  without  result. 

1 


2  :  TIffi  LARGER  VISION 

But  as  this  one  man  looks  upon  it,  he  gets  a 
vision  in  which  he  beholds  the  old-fashioned 
stage  coach  giving  way  to  the  iron  horse,  thun- 
dering out  across  the  plains;  and  the  slow-sail- 
ing wind  vessel  giving  way  to  the  ocean  liner, 
down  in  whose  engine-room  he  beholds  a  mighty 
Corliss  engine,  the  expansion  of  whose  lungs  of 
steel  sends  the  great  liner  plowing  through  the 
waves  of  the  deep  in  the  very  teeth  of  the  tem- 
pest; sees  the  wheels  of  human  industry  turned 
by  the  potent  arm  of  steam  power,  and  Franklin 
has  succeeded  in  completely  revolutionizing  the 
commercial  world. 

Lying  prone  upon  the  earth  under  an  apple 
tree  one  summer's  day,  his  head  propped  up  by 
his  hands,  one  of  these  world  leaders  was  deeply 
absorbed  in  thought,  when  suddenly  a  gentle 
breeze  loosed  an  apple  from  its  stem,  and  falling 
earthward,  the  apple  smote  him  on  the  head. 

Perhaps  a  thousand  other  men  might  have  had 
a  similar  experience,  only  to  have  entertained 
thoughts  and  given  utterance  to  expressions 
which  would  not  look  well  in  print. 

But  this  one  man  had  a  vision,  and  leaping  to 
his  feet,  unmindful  of  the  impact  of  the  apple, 
cried  out :  "  Eureka,  I  have  found  it,"  and  as 
he  walks  forth  I  see  in  his  hand  the  key  of 
gravitation,  in  the  use  of  which  have  been  un- 
locked all  the  doors  of  the  physical  universe, 


THE  LARGER  VISION  3 

"  doors  of  oak,  doors  of  brass,  doors  of  iron," 
cluster  systems,  group  systems,  planet  systems, 
world  systems,  sun  systems,  all  open.  Newton 
has  succeeded  in  wresting  down  to  earth  the  se- 
crets of  the  stars. 

I  see  still  another  world  leader  walking  the 
shores  of  sunny  Italy,  noting  a  bit  of  strange 
driftwood  lying  on  the  shore. 

A  thousand  other  men  might  have  witnessed 
a  similar  sight,  and  perhaps  with  little  thought 
or  casual  reference,  passed  on.  But  as  Colum- 
bus looks  upon  the  driftwood,  he  gets  a  vision, 
and  forthwith  goes  forth  to  discover  a  new 
world. 

Inspiring,  however,  as  is  the  pastime  of 
tracing  the  footsteps  of  men  of  vision  in  the 
temporal  world,  still  more  so  is  that  belonging 
to  the  spiritual  realm. 

See,  then,  yonder  monk  of  Erfurt,  reclining 
on  the  spiral  stairway  perusing  the  word  of  God, 
suddenly  leaping  to  his  feet,  his  face  all  aglow 
with  a  floodtide  of  illumination  surging  up 
through  brain  and  heart,  exclaiming :  "  The 
just  shall  live  by  faith,"  and  going  forth  to  nail 
against  the  Wittenburg  chapel  door  his  ninety- 
five  theses,  literally  a  protest  against  spiritual 
apostasy,  the  outrageous  practice  of  "  indul- 
gences," which  became  the  battering  ram  of 
Jehovah's  vengeance,  shaking  the  decaying 


4  THE  LARGER  VISION 

Roman   empire   from    center   to   circumference, 
and  —  Protestantism  was  born. 

Or  see  out  yonder  on  the  plains  at  night  a 
refuge,  a  supplanter,  a  man  dominated  by  self- 
centered  motives,  who  has  selected  the  earth  for 
his  bed,  a  stone  for  his  pillow,  and  the  star- 
spangled  canopy  of  the  heavens  for  a  covering. 
And  as  he  sleeps,  he  has  a  dream  —  has  a  vision 

—  in  which  he  beholds  a  ladder  set  upon  the 
earth,  whose  top  reaches  to  heaven ;  and  behold, 
angels  were  ascending,  bearing  petitions   from 
sin-burdened     souls    heavenward  —  and     angels 
descending  were  bearing  back  from  the  throne 
of  God  answers  of  joy  and  peace  —  a  revela- 
tion of  the  possibility  of  a  sin  —  estranged  race 
becoming  reconciled  to  a  justly  offended  God. 

And  a  little  later  see  this  world  leader  testing 
out  that  vision,  wrestling  all  night  with  one  of 
these  angels ;  and  when  the  dawn  broke,  the 
angel  said  to  him,  "  Let  me  go,  for  the  day 
breaketh."  And  this  man,  engaged,  not  in 
"  wresting  down  the  secrets  of  the  stars,"  but 
rather  that  greater  wealth  of  possession,  the 
secret  of  the  mind  and  heart  of  God,  cried  out, 
"  I  will  not  let  thee  go  unless  thou  bless  me  " 

—  that  is  unless  thou  introduce  me  to  the  King 
of  Heaven,   that  I   may  become   reconciled   to 
him ;  and  his  iron  will  prevailed. 

No  wonder  God  spoke  to  him,  saying,  "  Thy 


THE  LARGER  VISION  5 

name  shall  no  longer  be  called  Jacob  " —  the 
supplanter  and  self-seeker,  with  nature  bent  in 
the  direction  of  an  acquisition  of  flocks  and 
herds  — "  but  Israel,"  with  feet  traversing  the 
higher  levels  — "  for  as  a  prince,  thou  hast  pre- 
vailed with  God  and  with  men." 

It  is  needless  to  say  that  all  was  over  but  the 
"  shouting " ;  having  become  reconciled  with 
God,  reconciliation  with  his  outraged  brother, 
Esau,  followed  as  naturally  as  day  follows  the 
night. 

Of  greater  import  to  the  world  than  all  the 
gold  finds  of  Alaska  or  diamond  fields  of  South 
Africa  was  this  spiritual  vision  given  to  Jacob. 
Once  the  world  has  made  practical  application  of 
this  vision,  all  racial  differences  shall  have  dis- 
appeared, the  hated  doctrine  of  "  caste"  shall 
be  forgotten ;  the  last  sword  shall  become  trans- 
formed into  a  plowshare,  and  the  final  spear 
beaten  into  a  pruning  hook ;  or,  as  the  poet  has 

put  it, 

"  When  some  sweet  bird  from  the  south, 

Shall  build  in  every  cannon  mouth; 
Till  the  only  sound  from  its  rusty  throat, 

Shall  be  that  of  a  wren  or  a  bluebird's  note." 

When  all  men  shall  have  received  this  vision, 
then  shall  all  differences  between  labor  and 
capital  be  adjusted ;  "  trade  unions "  and 


6  THE  LARGER  VISION 

"  trusts  "  shall  be  but  a  memory ;  and  walking 
arm  in  arm  "  the  ways  of  justice,  brotherhood, 
and  love,"  the  capitalist  shall  address  the  labor- 
er, and  the  laborer  shall  address  the  capitalist, 
both  speaking  in  one  voice,  in  the  sweetest  tones 
of  earth  or  heaven,  saying  "  For  we  be  breth- 
ren." 

II.  THE  RIGHT  PERSPECTIVE 
There  is  a  world  of  difference  in  the  way  we 
look  at  things.  The  perspective  held  in  mind 
bulks  big  in  the  taking  of  a  picture ;  the  forming 
of  an  estimate  of  ourselves,  our  neighbor,  and 
of  God  is  responsible  for  the  weal  or  woe  of  the 
race. 

Dwelling  in  a  palatial  residence,  possessed  of 
an  abundance  of  this  world's  goods ;  or  living  in 
obscurity,  unknown  to  the  world,  and  being  able 
to  truthfully  sing, 

"  No  foot  of  land  do  I  possess, 

Nor  cottage  in  a  wilderness  — 
A  poor,  wayfaring  man/' 

enters  not  into  the  equation  of  happiness,  if  we 
have  the  right  perspective  of  life.  Mr.  Long- 
fellow has  well  said  "  Brown  owns  the  mountain, 
Smith  owns  the  vale,  and  Jones  owns  the  river  — 
but  the  landscape  is  mine." 

Given  the  right  perspective,  and  the  sun 
shines  for  man,  the  flowers  bloom  for  him,  for 


THE  LARGER  VISION  7 

him  the  earth  yields  her  products.  It  is  his  to 
live  in  a  world  home  beautiful  beyond  compare, 
with  a  background  of  "  suns,  moons,  worlds, 
constellations,  systems ;  all  that  is  magnificent  in 
motion;  all  that  is  sublime  in  magnitude;  all 
that  is  grand  in  order  and  obedience,"  causing 
him  to  reiterate  the  words  of  the  Psalmist: 
"  The  heavens  declare  the  glory  of  God,  and 
the  firmament  showeth  his  handiwork;  day 
unto  day  uttereth  speech  and  night  unto  night 
showeth  knowledge." 

To  the  man  possessed  of  the  right  perspec- 
tive, all  trains  crossing  all  continents,  and  all 
ships,  sailing  all  seas  are  his  common  carriers, 
bearing  to  his  very  door  the  choicest  commod- 
ities of  earth.  A  rich  temporal  heritage  is  his ; 
but  richer  still  is  his  spiritual  heritage,  for  he 
has  learned  the  significance  of  the  words  of  the 
great  Apostle :  "  For  all  things  are  yours, 
whether  Paul  or  Apollo,  or  Cephas,  or  the  world, 
or  life,  or  death,  or  things  present  or  things  to 
come;  all  are  yours  and  ye  are  Christ's  and 
Christ  is  God's." 

But  poor  indeed  is  the  man  possessed  of  the 
wrong  perspective.  For  him,  clouds  lower  in 
the  heavens,  drought  blights  the  harvests,  the 
germs  of  disease  float  in  the  atmosphere,  and 
doubts  and  misgivings,  like  full  grown  giants, 
stalk  the  earth.  Envy  lurks  like  a  destroying 


8  THE  LARGER  VISION 

monster  in  his  heart ;  the  laughter  of  little  chil- 
dren mocks  him;  peace  of  mind,  joy  of  heart, 
and  contentment  of  life  are  minus  quantities ; 
success  like  a  will  of  the  wisp  is  ever  eluding 
him;  friendships  are  but  saddened  memories  to 
him,  for  "  the  hand  of  every  man  is  turned 
against  him."  To  him  there  is  a  swift  over- 
taking of  prosperity  by  adversity;  the  dis- 
placing of  sunlight  by  shadow,  of  daytime  by 
night ;  in  a  word,  his  is  the  experience  of  the  old 
lady  who  said :  "  I  always  feel  bad  when  I  feel 
good,  for  I  know  I  shall  feel  badly  after  a 
while." 

His  supreme  need  is  an  annihilation  of  pessi- 
mism and  a  substitution  of  the  more  wholesome 
spirit  of  optimism ;  the  displacement  of  the 
spirit  of  despondency  and  complaint,  and  a 
large  endowment  of  a  right  perspective  —  the 
larger  vision  of  life.  My  friend,  the  late  Col. 
Copeland,  of  wide  renown  as  a  lecturer,  delighted 
in  telling  his  experience  on  his  honeymoon  at 
Niagara  Falls.  Seated  with  his  bride  in 
"  Lover's  Nook "  near  Goat's  Island,  they 
heard  the  sound  of  footsteps,  and  playing  a 
game  of  "  peek-a-boo,"  saw  a  tall,  finely  dressed 
gentleman  —  a  New  England  manufacturer  by 
trade  —  approaching  the  falls.  Gazing  upon 
the  stupendous  waterfall  leaping  over  its  chasm, 
he  murmured  to  himself :  "  My !  If  I  could 


THE  LARGER  VISION  9 

harness  Niagara  to  my  mills,  my  fortune  would 
be  made."  A  little  later  they  heard  the  sound 
of  footsteps,  and  this  time  saw  approaching  the 
falls  a  genuine  representative  of  the  "  wild  and 
wooly  west,"  a  sheep  raiser  by  trade,  living  in 
a  section  of  the  country  where,  by  reason  of  an 
absence  of  clear  water,  he  found  it  difficult  to 
wash  the  wool,  preparing  it  for  the  market ;  and 
as  he  looked  upon  the  self-same  spectacle  of  the 
mighty  waterfall  apparently  going  to  waste,  he 
exclaimed :  "  My,  what  a  place  to  wash  wool." 
And  still  again  they  heard  the  sound  of  foot- 
steps, and  this  time  they  saw  an  aged  man,  bowed 
beneath  the  weight  of  years,  but  with  kindly, 
beaming  eye,  thoughtful  face,  and  reverent  de- 
meanor ;  and  as  he  approached  the  falls,  falling 
on  bended  knees,  with  clasped  hands,  and  face 
turned  heavenward,  he  exclaimed :  "  Father,  I 
thank  thee  for  permitting  me  to  live  to  see  this 
exhibition  of  thy  power  and  glory." 

It  makes  a  world  of  difference,  the  perspec- 
tive we  get  of  life. 

One  glorious  summer's  day,  I  stood  on 
Inspiration  Point,  in  the  Grand  Canyon  of  the 
Yellowstone  National  Park.  Feasting  my  eyes 
on  the  panorama  of  nature's  beauty,  clinging 
to  the  rock,  I  lost  all  conscious  fear,  despite 
the  fact  that  seemingly  borne  up  on  arms  of 
empty  space,  it  was  two  thousand  feet  sheer 


10  THE  LARGER  VISION 

down  into  the  yawning  chasm  beneath.  Yonder 
in  the  distance  were  the  great  falls  of  the  Yellow- 
stone, three  miles  away,  dashing,  as  in  a  sort  of 
agony,  against  the  rocks  below.  There  was  no 
sound,  for  "  the  mighty  distance  laid  the  fingers 
of  silence  upon  the  lips  of  the  descending  cat- 
aract." Lifting  their  heads  above  me  were 
mighty  canyon  walls,  upon  which  the  great  Ar- 
tist, God,  had  hung  his  masterpieces,  whose  col- 
orings were  made  up  of  entangled  rainbows  and 
pinioned  sunsets.  Intoxicated  on  the  wine  of 
nature's  beauty,  my  very  soul  was  enthralled ;  I 
noted  not  the  passing  of  time,  and  my  thoughts 
turned  to  that  other  and  ageless  life  beyond  the 
stars,  where  no  one  is  ever  heard  to  say,  "  I  am 
sick,"  and  where  we  shall  never  grow  weary  and 
never  grow  old;  and  I  thought  I  better  under- 
stood the  meaning  of  the  words  of  inspiration: 
"  A  thousand  years  are  but  as  one  day  and  one 
day  as  a  thousand  years." 

But  by-and-by,  starting  up,  I  turned  to  see 
how  my  companions  were  enjoying  this  wonder- 
land of  the  west;  and  I  found  a  young  couple 
making  love  to  each  other.  Turning  away  in 
amazement,  the  words  formed  on  my  lips  "  Is 
it  possible  to  be  in  heaven  and  not  know  it?  " 
I  recalled  the  words  of  the  great  Teacher: 
"  Because  they,  seeing,  see  not ;  and  hearing, 
they  hear  not,  neither  do  they  understand." 


THE  LARGER  VISION  11 

III.    OPENED  EYES 

Bobby  Burns,  in  his  unique  style,  was  wont 
to  exclaim: 

"  O  wad  some  power  the  giftie  gie  us, 
To  see  oursels  as  ithers  see  us." 

Better  still  do  I  like  the  exclamation  of 
another :  "  O  for  the  power  to  see  through 
Jesus'  eyes."  Then  would  every  wayside  flower, 
reaching  out  arms  of  appropriation,  utilizing  the 
trinity  of  physical  forces  about  —  earth,  air 
and  sunlight, —  developing  the  ability  to  give 
out  beauty  and  fragrance,  speak  of  the  trinity 
of  spiritual  forces,  God  the  Father,  God  the  Son, 
and  God  the  Holy  Spirit,  all  awaiting  our 
appropriation,  enabling  us  to  "  grow  up  into 
our  living  head,  Christ  Jesus  the  Lord."  Then 
should  mountain  peaks,  buttressing  against  the 
sky,  with  shoulders  of  strength  holding  back 
the  tempests  that  would  otherwise  whelm  us, 
bespeak  the  shoulders  of  infinite  strength, 
vouchsafing  protection  from  the  stormy  blasts. 
Then  should  the  summer's  shower,  refreshing 
and  rejuvenating  nature,  recall  to  us  a  million 
voices  of  drooping  vegetation ;  leaves  brown  and 
sear,  and  fields  of  "  sun  fired  "  corn  pleading 
for  rain;  and  in  response  to  this  petition,  the 
sun,  bending  very  low,  with  golden  dippers  lift- 


12  THE  LARGER  VISION 

ing  water  from  the  deep  into  the  carriers,  the 
clouds  —  which  scurrying  across  mountains, 
hills,  and  dales,  dispense  their  blessings  far  and 
wide,  transforming  these  millions  of  pleading 
voices  into  so  many  voices  of  praise,  rendering  a 
Te  Deum  of  thanksgiving  to  the  Author  of  every 
good  and  perfect  gift  —  be  found  reminding 
us  of  the  sublime  truth  that  we  are  the  golden 
human  dippers,  God  appointed  to  go  down  into 
the  deeps  of  God ;  that  we  are  "  the  clouds  of 
mercy,"  the  spiritual  carriers,  whose  mission  it 
is  to  hurry  across  the  mountains,  hills,  and  dales 
of  human  experience,  depositing  "  showers  of 
blessing"  upon  a  thirsty  world.  Then  should 
we  "  ken  "  the  significance  of  the  words  of  the 
poet: 

"  There  seems  a  voice  in  every  gale, 

A  tongue  in  every  flower; 
That  tells,  O  Lord,  the  wondrous  tale, 
Of  thine  Almighty  power." 

With  opened  eyes  the  prophet  Isaiah  entered 
into  the  temple,  and  we  will  do  well  to  listen  to 
his  experience  as  told  by  himself. 

"  In  the  year  that  King  Uzziah  died,  I  saw  also 
the  Lord  sitting  upon  a  throne,  high  and  lifted  up, 
and  his  train  filled  the  temple.  Above  it  stood  the 
seraphims;  each  one  had  six  wings;  with  twain  he 
covered  his  face,  and  with  twain  he  covered  his 
feet,  and  with  twain  he  did  fly. 


THE  LARGER  VISION  13 

"  And  one  cried  unto  another  and  said,  holy, 
holy,  holy  is  the  Lord  God  of  hosts;  the  whole 
earth  is  full  of  his  glory. 

"  And  the  posts  of  the  door  moved  at  the  voice 
of  him  that  cried,  and  the  house  was  filled  with 
smoke  (glory)." 

O  that  with  opened  eyes  we  might  ever  enter 
into  His  sacred  courts,  that  we  might  see  the 
One,  high  and  lifted  up,  seated  upon  the  throne ; 
that  we  might  behold  the  seraphims,  and  join 
with  them  in  the  refrain :  "  Holy,  holy,  holy  is 
the  Lord  God  of  hosts ;  "  that  we  might  be  en- 
circled by  the  glory  of  this  holy  place,  and  go 
forth  to  fulfil  the  prophecy  —  "  filling  the  whole 
earth  with  his  glory." 


THE  IMAGERY  OF  THE  BIBLE 


"  Imagination  rules  the  world." 

—  NAPOLEON. 

"  The  soul  without  imagination  is  what  an  ob- 
servatory would  be  without  a  telescope." 

—  LOWELL. 

"  Like  a  great  cathedral  is  the  word  of  God. 
Viewed  from  without,  no  satisfactory  vision  may  be 
had  of  the  artist's  dream;  but  viewed  from  within, 
a  miracle  of  grace  and  beauty  breaks  in  upon  us. 
In  like  manner,  viewed  from  without,  the  word  of 
God  possesses  but  little  charm  for  the  soul;  but 
viewed  from  within,  a  miracle  of  marvelous  truth 
enthralls  him." 

— L. 

"  The  eyes  of  your  understanding  being  enlight- 
ened; that  ye  may  know  what  is  the  hope  of  His 
calling,  and  what  the  riches  of  the  glory  of  His 
inheritance  in  the  saints." 

—  EPHESIANS,  1-18. 


II 

THE  IMAGERY  OF  THE  BIBLE 

"  I  am  not  possessed  of  poetic  temperament, 
hence  I  have  not  wasted  valuable  time,  wandering 
aimlessly  in  the  literary  world;  rather  have  I  been 
content  to  deal  with  the  practical  side  of  life." 

This  expression,  falling  from  the  lips  of  a 
well-known  divine,  surprised  and  startled  me, 
since  herein  is  found  one  of  the  most  fertile 
fields  of  research,  one  of  the  most  valuable 
adjuncts  in  the  interpretation  of  the  word  of 
God.  The  Bible  is  a  veritable  mine  of  symbo- 
lism, literary  wealth,  etc.,  which  has  challenged 
the  attention,  gripped  the  thought  and  enriched 
the  lives  of  the  world's  greatest  scholars  and 
thinkers.  Would  you  possess  yourself  of  the 
choicest  rhetoric,  you  need  not  search  in  the 
world's  great  libraries  for  it ;  it  is  found  in 
the  word  of  God.  If  you  would  become  inspired 
by  the  sublime  symbolism,  you  will  find  it  in  the 
book  of  books.  If  you  would  engage  in  the  task 
of  expanding  the  world's  greatest  similes,  you 
need  not  peruse  all  the  works  on  logic  extant  — 

you  will  find  them  in  Holy  Writ.     If  you  would 
17 


18  THE  LARGER  VISION 

enrich  your  vocabulary  by  rare  literary  gems, 
you  will  find  them  in  the  Bible. 

In  a  word,  the  most  striking  antitheses,  the 
most  telling  hyperboles,  the  keenest  satire,  the 
pithiest  epigrams,  the  most  effective  metonymies, 
and  synecdoches  to  be  found  anywhere  abound  in 
those  Scriptures  given  by  inspiration  of  God, 
which  "  are  profitable  for  doctrine,  for  correc- 
tion, for  reproof,  and  for  instruction  in  right- 
eousness." 

"  Not  possessed  of  the  poetic  temperament  " 
—  as  well  say,  "  I  am  not  possessed  of  an  his- 
toric temperament,  therefore,  I  have  not  wasted 
valuable  time  in  familiarizing  myself  with  the 
historicity  of  things ;"  and  yet  the  most  inspir- 
ing realm,  in  all  history,  is  that  portion  of  the 
word,  which  deals  with  the  origin  of  the 
world  home  in  which  we  dwell,  the  inhabitants 
thereof,  and  a  Common  Creator,  God.  As  well 
be  guilty  of  the  folly  of  declaring,  "  I  am 
not  of  a  legal  turn  of  mind,  therefore  I  have 
not  wasted  valuable  time  in  familiarizing  my- 
self with  the  tenets  of  law;"  though  the  Ten 
Commandments  in  themselves  form  the  bases  of 
all  law.  Or,  "  I  am  not  gifted  with  the  pro- 
phetic instinct,  therefore,  I  have  not  troubled 
myself  to  grip  the  utterances  of  the  major  and 
minor  prophets." 

Riding  along  one  day,  with  a  noted  jurist,  he 


THE  IMAGERY  OF  THE  BIBLE      19 

looked  into  my  face,  and  in  impressive  tones, 
said,  "After  all,  the  great  business  of  this  world 
is  that  of  preaching  the  gospel  of  Jesus  Christ." 

A  greater  than  the  one  referred  to  has  said : 
"  Study  to  show  thyself  approved  unto  God,  a 
workman  that  needeth  not  to  be  ashamed,  rightly 
dividing  the  word  of  truth." 

But  to  divide  the  word  of  truth  "  rightly," 
means,  that  the  man  of  God  must  be  a 
poet,u  a  statesman,  a  historian,  a  logician,  a 
philosopher,  a  scientist,  all  in  one.  That  is  to 
say,  he  must  possess  a  poetic  turn  of  mind,  must 
be  alive  to  the  current  problems  of  the  times, 
familiar  with  the  historicity  of  things,  capable 
of  making  deductions  from  great  truths,  of  see- 
ing the  philosophy,  "  the  eternal  fitness  of 
things,"  and  capable  of  applying  scientific  data. 
In  a  word,  the  man  of  God  must  be  possessed  of 
the  larger  vision,  finding  in  all  of  life's  varied 
and  limitless  environs  "  windows  of  the  soul," 
through  which  he  may  look  and,  seeing,  utilize 
in  the  illumination,  interpretation  and  enforce- 
ment of  the  great  truths  of  God. 

I.     SPIRITUAL  SYMBOLISM 

We  have  already  said  the  Bible  abounds  in 
symbols,  sublime  metaphors,  embodying  the 
most  suggestive  truths. 

Take  as  an  illustration  the  opening  sentence 


20  THE  LARGER  VISION 

of  the  book :  "  In  the  beginning  —  God." 
Reading  between  the  lines,  we  have  "  a  glorious 
archway  connecting  the  unknown  past  with  the 
known  present."  I  had  rather  have  been  the 
author  of  this  sentence  than  to  have  written 
the  immortal  dramas  of  Shakespeare  or,  as 
the  commanding  general,  won  the  battle  of  Wa- 
terloo. And  though  adown  the  ages  skeptics  and 
scientific  unbelievers  have  made  this  archway  a 
target,  against  which  to  direct  the  shafts  of 
would  be  annihilation,  though  master  minds 
have  advanced  the  theories  of  "  Spontaneous 
Generation,"  "  Natural  Selection,"  "  The  Ori- 
gin of  Species,"  etc. —  after  the  Darwins,  Hux- 
leys,  Spencers,  etc.,  have  shot  their  last  bolt, 
the  old  archway  stands  forth  as  a  veritable  Gib- 
raltar of  strength. 

"  In  the  beginning  " — "  the  words  carry  back 
the  mind,  awed  and  bewildered,  age  after  age, 
century  after  century,  back  on  back  to  that 
immeasurably  distant  and  dateless  period  when 
all  that  we  now  behold  was  not;  when  no  sun 
illumined  the  voids  of  space,  no  moon  relieved 
the  darkness  of  the  night,  nor  star  twinkled  in 
the  heavens ;  when  no  sound,  no  motion  had  ever 
broken  the  stillness  of  the  night;  when  neither 
mind  nor  matter  was  found  in  all  the  dark 
profound;  when  God  was  the  alone  existence; 


THE  IMAGERY  OF  THE  BIBLE      »1 

then,  even  then,  He  was,  and  was  all  that  He 
now  is,  in  wisdom,  power,  happiness  and  love."  * 

Continuing,  this  same  author  relates  how  this 
world  home  was  fitted  and  furnished  for  man's 
abode.  "  Electric  shocks  rent  the  clouds  and 
vibrated  the  rocky  strata;  volcanoes  burned 
and  belched  in  the  morning  of  time;  earth- 
quakes, with  shrug  of  shoulders,  caused  con- 
tinents to  rock  and  reel  like  a  drunken  man  or  a 
storm-tossed  ship  at  sea ;  gigantic  races  browsed 
over  the  ancient  continents  and  tiny  corals  toiled 
at  the  bottom  of  the  sea  —  all  working  together 
under  the  direction  of  the  divine  workman  to 
prepare  for  us  this  world  home." 

What  a  storm  of  criticism  has  grown  out 
of  the  expression  relative  to  the  space  of  time 
necessary  to  the  creation  of  the  world  —  "  six 
days."  To  the  thoughtful  student  of  the  word, 
however,  what  matter  whether  the  figure  six  days 
be  literal  or  figurative.  Could  not  He,  who 
could  call  into  requisition  such  mighty  agents 
as  were  employed,  by  a  single  and  almighty 
fiat,  have  caused  worlds  to  tremble  into  exis- 
tence; have  created  our  world,  and  flung  suns, 
moons  and  starry  worlds  into  their  places  in  a 
second's  time,  just  as  easily  as  in  six  days 
of  twenty-four  hours  each,  or  six  thousand 

*  "  Science  and  the  Bible." 


22  THE  LARGER  VISION 

ages,  since  with  Him  "  a  thousand  years  are 
but  as  one  day,  and  one  day  as  a  thousand 
years  "  ? 

What  matters  it  whether  Job  was  a  man  of 
flesh  and  blood  or  a  mythical  character,  around 
whose  life  has  been  woven  a  web  of  inspiring 
narrative,  —  connected  with  whose  experience 
the  heavens  became  tranformed  into  an  arsenal 
of  destruction,  razing  his  houses  to  their  very 
foundations,  destroying  his  sheep  land  herds, 
whilst  he  himself  is  smitten  with  disease,  and 
becomes  a  veritable  mass  of  corruption,  causing 
his  wife  to  imagine  that  He  who  would  thus 
afflict  "  a  just  man  "  could  be  nothing  short  of 
a  monster,  and  to  turn  to  her  husband,  exclaim- 
ing, "  Curse  God  and  die ; "  but  Job,  un- 
moved, cries  out :  "  Though  He  slay  me,  yet 
will  I  trust  Him  "  ?  The  all  important  item 
of  consideration  is  that  men  may  possess  a 
faith  like  unto  that  of  Job,  go  down  into  the 
depths  of  adverse  experience,  and  come  forth 
unscathed. 

What  matters  it  to  the  literary  world 
whether  Shakespeare  is  the  author  of  the  im- 
mortal dramas  which  bear  his  name?  The  all 
important  consideration  is  that  the  world  has 
been  enriched  beyond  compare  by  the  dramas 
themselves ;  and  if  not  the  "  Bard  of  Avon," 
then  some  one  possessed  of  the  genius  of  a 


THE  IMAGERY  OF  THE  BIBLE      23 

Shakespeare  has  placed  a  stupendous  mortgage 
upon  the  world's  gratitude. 

Some  one  has  pertinently  asked,  "  What's 
in  a  name?  "  and  then,  proceeding  to  answer 
his  own  question,  has  replied,  "  a  rose  would 
be  just  as  fragrant  if  called  by  some  other 
name." 

With  flourish  of  trumpets  the  scientific  unbe- 
liever, having  with  yard-stick  gone  to  the  pains 
of  measuring  the  mouth  and  abdomen  of  the 
whale,  and  finding  it  inadequate  to  the  purpose 
at  hand,  has  gone  forth  to  denounce  the  story 
of  Jonah  being  swallowed  by  a  whale  as  a  base 
fabrication.  If  modern  craftsmen  can  and  do 
construct  submarine  boats  in  which  men  go 
down  into  the  deep,  could  not  God  create  a 
craft,  "  a  great  fish,"  to  form  a  submarine  abode 
for  Jonah,  during  a  period  of  three  days  and 
nights  ? 

The  all  important  truth  symbolized  and  sanc- 
tioned by  the  Lord  is  that  which  has  to  do  with 
His  descent  into  the  grave  and  His  coming  forth 
again;  aye  of  the  glorious  truth  that,  because 
He  rose  again,  we  also  shall  come  forth  from  the 
charnel  house  of  death  and  dwell  forever  with 
Him. 

Perhaps  one  of  the  sublimest  symbols  con- 
tained in  the  book  is  that  wonderful  climax 
of  expression  found  in  the  description  of  Isaiah 


24  THE  LARGER  VISION 

of  the  advent,  suffering  and  ultimate  triumph 
of  the  sinless  Son  of  God.  Rising  from  moun- 
tain peak  to  higher  mountain  peak  of  inspiring 
expression,  at  length,  having  apparently 
exhausted  human  phraseology,  he  exclaims: 
"  And  His  name  shall  be  called  Wonderful,  the 
Mighty  God,  the  Prince  of  Peace,  the  Ever- 
lasting Father." 

Read  between  the  lines  of  this  sublime  symbol 
and  note  how  a  thousand  sermons  grow  out  of 
the  same.  The  "Mighty  God,"  holding  the 
reins  of  universal  supremacy  in  one  hand,  and 
with  the  other  hand  stooping  down  to  dry  the 
tear  of  the  mourner ;  the  "  Everlasting  Father," 
with  almighty  fiat  causing  worlds  to  tremble  into 
being,  giving  expression  to  tenderness  and 
sympathy  and  love,  world  wide  and  ages  long; 
the  "  Prince  of  Peace,"  not  with  sword  of  con- 
quest, but  with  invisible  chords  of  love  "  binding 
the  whole  round  earth  in  chains  of  gold  about 
the  feet  of  God  " ;  the  "  Wonderful  One,"  whose 
gift  to  the  world  impoverished  heaven  for  the  en- 
richment of  earth  with  outreach  of  mercy,  high 
as  heaven,  deep  as  hell  and  broad  as  the  need  of 
a  common  humanity. 

No  wonder  Isaiah  has  been  called  "  the 
prince  of  prophets,"  the  intellectual  millionaire, 
the  unapproachable  climax  builder;  to  him  was 
reserved  the  sublime  prerogative  of  character- 


THE  IMAGERY  OF  THE  BIBLE      £5 

izing  the  thought  and  purpose  of  the  All-Father 
relative  to  his  children. 

From  Genesis  to  Revelation  the  word  of  God 
abounds  in  spiritual  symbolism  such  as,  if  fully 
elaborated,  would  form  a  book  so  large  that  the 
world  would  not  be  able  to  contain  it. 

II.    CONTRIBUTARY  MATERIAL 

Having  pondered  the  value  of  the  imagery  of 
the  Bible,  we  will  do  well  to  note  the  fact  that 
all  about  us,  in  the  open  book  of  nature  and  in 
the  literary  realm,  are  to  be  found  contributary 
materials  of  an  enriching  character. 

Standing  one  day,  looking  into  the  bo'som  of 
Lake  Profile,  New  Hampshire,  my  attention 
was  directed  to  "  The  Old  Man  of  the  Moun- 
tains," a  freak  of  nature  on  the  summit  of  the 
mountain,  twelve  hundred  feet  above  me,  in  the 
shape  of  a  human  face,  forty  feet  from  brow  to 
tip  of  chin ;  and  I  was  led  to  contemplate  the 
fact  that  adown  the  storm-swept  centuries 
this  face  had  been  gazing  down  upon  Lake  Pro- 
file, as  if  to  reflect  therein  its  own  image,  sug- 
gestive of  the  fact  that  adown  the  centuries  an- 
other face,  from  the  height  of  glory,  has  been 
looking  down  into  the  bosom  of  human  hearts, 
seeking  to  reflect  therein  His  own  nature,  and 
to  lift  us  up  into  fellowship  and  communion 
with  Himself. 


26  THE  LARGER  VISION 

Driving  through  the  far-famed  Yosemite 
Valley,  I  became  conscious  of  the  fact  that 
old  El  Capitan,  a  veritable  mountain  of  gran- 
ite, three-quarters  of  a  mile  long  and  seven- 
eighths  of  a  mile  high,  seemed  to  be  ever  present 
with  us,  suggestive  of  that  Scripture  which  de- 
clares :  "  If  I  ascend  up  to  heaven,  if  I  make 
my  bed  in  hell,  if  I  take  the  wings  of  the  morn- 
ing, and  dwell  in  the  uttermost  parts  of  the 
earth,  even  there  shall  thy  hand  lead  me,  and 
thy  right  hand  shall  hold  me." 

Some  years  since  I  came  across  this  beauti- 
ful characterization  of  the  advent  of  the  sweet 
springtime :  "  Up  from  the  southland  comes 
the  springtime  rolling  her  waves  of  green  be- 
fore her,  crested  with  the  foam  of  daisies  and 
buttercups,  and  dashing  against  our  northern 
hills  become  broken  into  myriads  of  wild 
flowers." 

And  what  a  sublime  symbol  is  this  of  re- 
generation. Up  from  the  southland  of  infinite 
love  comes  the  sweet  springtime  of  the  new 
birth,  rolling  her  waves  of  hope  before  her, 
crested  with  the  foam  of  fervency  of  spirit,  and 
dashing  against  the  hillsides  of  spiritual  apos- 
tasy, become  broken  into  the  more  beautiful 
flowers  of  consecrated  living. 

America's  favorite  poet  is  Longfellow,  and 
herein  lies  the  secret,  in  large  part,  to  the  hold 


THE  IMAGERY  OF  THE  BIBLE      27 

which  he  has  gotten  on  all  our  hearts.  It  was 
near  the  close  of  the  poet's  life,  and  his  friends 
thought  his  pen  had  been  laid  aside  forever; 
and  he  doubtless  shared  this  thought.  But  one 
day  he  is  found  starting  up,  and  grasping  his 
pen,  wrote,  what  to  me  seems  enough  to  im- 
mortalize any  man.  Looking  back  over  the 
past  of  life,  and  recalling  the  rough,  steep  path- 
ways traversed,  the  burdens  borne,  the  heart- 
aches endured,  and  recognizing  the  fact  that 
others  must  make  a  similar  journey,  he  penned 
these  beautiful  lines: 

"  O  little  feet,  that  such  long  years 

Must  wander  on  through  hopes  and  fears, 
I,  nearer  to  the  wayside  inn  where  fears  shall  end 

and  hopes  begin, 
Am  weary,  thinking  of  your  load." 

"  Thinking  of  your  load  " —  how  the  words  re- 
mind us  of  the  spirit  of  Him  who  declared :  "  I 
came  not  to  be  ministered  unto,  but  to  minis- 
ter." 

Riding  along  on  the  train  one  day  to  meet  a 
lecture  engagement,  to  while  away  the  time  I 
purchased  a  volume  of  Opie  Read's  works.  I 
do  not  now  recall  the  name  of  the  volume,  or 
aught  beside  these  words :  "  There  are  no  cob- 
webs in  the  cottage  in  which  love  dwells,  and  if 
there  were,  every  thread  would  become  trans- 


£8  THE  LARGER  VISION 

formed  into  a  strand  of  gold."  And  I  became 
obsessed  by  a  new  theme  —  the  transforming 
power  of  love. 

Mr.  Hawthorne,  in  one  of  his  works,  recites 
how  an  eccentric  character  determined  to  erect 
a  house  for  himself,  and  for  his  materials 
selected  gray,  somber  clouds.  When  the  struc- 
ture was  completed,  it  resembled  more  an  ancient 
monastery  than  a  modern  manse.  He  then  de- 
termined to  illuminate  it,  and  for  his  material 
selected  a  glorious  evening's  sunset,  with  which 
he  gilded  it  from  top  to  bottom. 

In  this  house  of  fancy  was  held  a  "  select 
party,"  at  which  were  present  such  characters 
as  the  "  oldest  inhabitant,"  the  "  patriot  with- 
out partisanship,"  the  "  poet  without  ped- 
antry," the  "  priest  without  worldly  ambition," 
etc. 

Entering  this  house  of  fancy  the  guests  found 
one  of  the  ceilings  upborne  by  pillars  of  solid 
golden  sunbeams,  the  room  lighted  up  with  chan- 
deliers of  flaming  meteors,  whose  dazzling  light 
was  tempered  by  globes  of  evening  mist. 

And  instantly  there  stood  out  before  me  the 
vision  of  "  the  house  not  made  with  hands, 
eternal  in  the  heavens  " ;  of  its  environs  of  ever- 
lasting hills,  in  the  distance ;  of  streets  of  gold, 
pearly  gates  and  jasper  walls;  of  fountains 
leaping  into  ethereal  air,  struck  through  and 


THE  IMAGERY  OF  THE  BIBLE      29 

through  and  dripping  with  light  leaping  from 
the  throne  —  a  home  where  no  one  is  ever  heard 
to  say,  "  I  am  sick,"  and  where  we  shall  never 
grow  weary  and  never  grow  old. 

In  the  beginning  of  my  ministry  I  was  brought 
in  contact  with  a  cultured,  beautiful  woman,  the 
wife  of  a  Methodist  preacher.  It  was  an  ideal 
home,  but  that  dread  disease,  diphtheria,  en- 
tered the  home  and  three  lovely  girls,  their  all, 
were  laid  away.  The  nervous  strain  was  too 
great  for  the  husband,  and  he  broke  under  it; 
for  a  number  of  years  that  brave  little  woman 
stood  at  her  post,  trying  to  nurse  him  back  to 
health  and  strength.  At  length  the  physicians 
decided  that  his  only  hope  lay  in  a  complete 
rest  at  a  distant  sanitarium.  But  the  wife  did 
not  have  the  wherewithal  to  provide  for  such  a 
journey,  and  some  of  us  made  up  the  amount 
and  forwarded  it  to  her.  I  shall  never  forget 
the  acknowledgment  of  the  remittance  sent  me 
—  every  sentence  seemed  dripping  with  her 
heart's  gratitude.  The  letter  closed  with  a 
quotation  of  these  beautifully  pathetic  lines : 

"  I  know  not  where  His  islands  lift 

Their  fronded  palms  in  air; 
I  only  know  I  cannot  drift, 
Beyond  His  love  and  care." 

Oh,  the  imagery  of  the  book  of  books,  oh, 


30  THE  LARGER  VISION 

the  contributary  materials  lying  all  about  us, 
enriching  in  two  worlds  the  soul  who  has  the 
larger  vision. 


UNSEEN  FORCES 


"  Narrow-visioned  souls  would  have  us  believe 
that  the  world  is  hastening  to  an  empty  tomb;  that 
'  the  age  of  poetry,  romance,  heroism  has  forever 
passed ' ;  that  the  pen  of  the  *  Bard  of  Avon  '  is 
grown  rusty;  that  the  shadow  of  great  statesmen 
—  the  Lincolns,  Gladstones,  Bismarcks  —  no 
longer  haunts  the  forum;  that  the  voice  of  elo- 
quence of  Beechers,  Spurgeons,  Simpsons,  is  for- 
ever stilled;  that  the  sweep  of  vision  of  Isaiahs, 
Jeremiahs,  Daniels,  has  lost  its  objective;  that  the 
creeds  of  Calvin,  Wesley,  Edwards,  have  vanished; 
that  '  the  harp  of  a  Wagner  is  covered  with  the 
dust  of  oblivion  ' ;  that  the  veiled  face  of  a  Moses 
descending  from  a  flaming  Sinai,  like  meteors  of 
light,  '  tempered  by  globes  of  evening  mist,'  is  but 
a  memory ;  that  the  God  of  ancient  days  is  dead. 

"  But  the  man  of  larger  vision  will  not  have  it  so. 
He  sees  a  world  hastening  toward  a  higher  civiliza- 
tion; poetry,  romance,  heroism  becoming  idealized; 
the  immortal  dramas  of  a  Shakspeare  incarnated 
in  daily  living;  the  shadow  of  great  statesmen 
grown  into  great  republics;  the  eloquence  of 
'  silver-tongued  orators  '  grown  into  more  eloquent 
acts  and  deeds;  the  prophetic  vision  realized  in 
events  familiar;  the  creeds  of  leaders  in  ecclesi- 
astical forums  flowering  into  philanthropy,  educa- 
tional centers ;  good  angels  of  light,  clad  in  the 
robes  of  humanity,  wending  their  way  into  the  dark 
places  of  the  earth ;  the  light  of  the  Ten  Command- 
ments illumining  a  sin-darkened  world. 

"  God  is  not  dead,  but  alive  forevermore." 

—  L. 


Ill 

UNSEEN  FORCES 

What  fireside  has  not  been  regaled  by  the 
tales  of  Bagdad  of  the  eleventh  century,  known 
as  the  "  Arabian  Nights,"  in  which  "  favored 
persons  were  found  invoking  the  aid  of  fairies, 
sprites,  genii,  etc,  in  the  acquisition  of  wealth, 
fame  and  beautiful  brides  "  ? 

The  product  of  a  vivid  imagination,  these 
tales  have  traveled  the  world  around. 

Had  the  author  of  "  Arabian  Nights  "  lived 
in  our  day,  without  drawing  upon  his  imagin- 
ation he  had  found  materials  at  hand  —  the 
forces  and  influences  utilized  by  men  in  daily 
living  —  outrivaling  all  his  own  materials,  and 
that  without  exciting  a  breath  of  suspicion  as  to 
their  reality. 

I  have  seen  in  Oriental  countries  frail  women 
as  beasts  of  burden,  bearing  on  their  heads  or 
shoulders  earthen  jugs  of  water  for  the  house- 
hold. In  our  day  we  have  substituted  gravi- 
tation to  perform  this  service,  and  lo,  water  in 
abundance  to  supply  kitchen  and  lavatories, 
"  leaps  and  laughs  with  pearly  spray  "  in  every 

well  regulated  household. 
33 


34  THE  LARGER  VISION 

Had  the  author  of  "  Arabian  Nights  "  been 
permitted,  like  the  author  of  "  Looking  Back- 
ward," to  have  annihilated  the  flood  of  years 
and  looked  upon  this  modern  utility  —  this 
force  of  gravitation  —  at  work,  what  a  tale  he 
had  had  to  add  to  his  collection. 

Standing  under  the  shadow  of  the  Cheops 
Pyramid,  I  was  minded  of  the  statement  of  the 
historian,  Herodotus,  that  it  required  one  hun- 
dred thousand  men,  toiling  for  twenty  years,  to 
erect  this  tomb  for  a  dead  king. 

In  our  age  of  the  world,  through  the  use  of 
mechanical  genius,  we  have  erected  skyscrapers 
outrivaling  the  great  pyramid,  fitting  and  fur- 
nishing these,  where  dwell  the  captains  of  in- 
dustry, supplemented  by  hundreds  of  subordi- 
nates —  in  touch  with  the  world  at  large  — 
carrying  forward  the  world's  business ;  and  yet 
we  erect  one  of  these  skyscrapers,  with  a  com- 
paratively small  number  of  workers,  inside  of 
a  few  months. 

Given  the  larger  vision,  and  all  about  us,  in 
the  temporal  and  spiritual  realms,  are  found 
forces  which  make  for  the  enrichment  of  human- 
kind. The  vast  universe,  in  a  mighty  chorus 
of  voices,  ranging  from  the  gentle  zephyr  fan- 
ning the  heated  brow  —  suggestive  of  the  elec- 
tric fan  —  to  the  thunder  crashing  along  the 
mountains  of  the  skies  —  the  forerunner  of  re- 


UNSEEN  FORCES  35 

freshing  showers  —  bespeaks  forces  designed  to 
be  the  burden  bearers  for  man. 

When  a  lad  on  the  farm  in  the  early  morning, 
driving  the  cows  to  pasture,  my  attention  was 
oft  directed  to  the  intricate  network,  the  finely 
woven  web  of  the  spider,  surpassing  in  mechan- 
ical genius  the  greatest  achievement  of  man, 
which  had  been  accomplished  in  a  single  night. 
Did  the  creator  of  the  famous  Brooklyn  Bridge 
sit  at  the  feet  of  the  tiny  spider  and  learn  how 
to  form  those  stupendous  arches  of  steel? 

The  diligent  ant,  building  a  home  for  itself 
and  young,  reminds  us  of  the  sublimer  task 
committed  to  mortals  of  engaging  in  the  work 
of  erection  of  the  great,  mysterious  temple  of 
righteousness.  "  Go  to  the  ant,  thou  sluggard, 
consider  her  ways,  and  be  wise."  (Proverbs 
6:  6.) 

When  a  refugee  from  home,  with  heart  broken 
over  the  usurpation  of  the  throne  by  the  profli- 
gate and  unscrupulous  Absalom,  his  own  son, 
David,  in  the  midnight  hour  —  suggestive  of  the 
darker  night-time  of  his  experience  —  listened 
to  the  roar  of  the  deep,  as  if  responding  to  the 
noise  of  the  water  brooks,  suggestive  of  the 
heart  of  the  All-Father  beating  out  in  sym- 
pathetic throb  to  the  heartache  and  heartbreak 
of  His  children.  "  Deep  calleth  unto  deep  at 
the  noise  of  thy  waterspouts ;  all  thy  waves  and 


36  THE  LARGER  VISION 

thy  billows   are   gone  over  me."      (Psalm   42: 
7.) 

I.    UNSEEN  FORCES 

Encamped  at  Dothan  was  the  man  upon 
whose  shoulders  had  descended  the  mantle  of 
Elijah,  the  prophet  Elisha. 

The  mere  mention  of  Dothan  suffices  to  grip 
the  thought  and  command  the  attention  of  the 
biblical  student,  being  associated  with  historic 
events,  fascinating  in  character.  Was  it  not 
here  that  Joseph  was  sold  into  slavery  by  jeal- 
ous brethren,  after  having  been  thrown  into  the 
dry  pit  to  rot  and  die  —  his  dreams  perishing 
with  him?  But  presently  another  opportunity 
to  visit  upon  him  a  more  terrible  punishment 
appeared  in  the  shape  of  a  caravan,  bound  for 
the  land  of  the  Pharaohs.  And  as  his  new 
master  led  Joseph  away,  I  have  thought  I  could 
hear  his  brethren  murmuring,  "  Down  in  Egypt, 
through  years  of  heart-breaking  bondage,  he 
will  have  plenty  of  time  to  ponder  the  signifi- 
cance of  dreams  of  superiority."  Had  their 
eyes  been  opened,  they  had  seen  that  they  were 
unwittingly  assisting  to  fulfill  the  dreams  of 
Joseph,  and  that  by  and  by,  when  gaunt  famine 
had  stalked  through  Canaan,  in  quest  of  bread 
they  should  be  found  bowing  very  low,  in  Ori- 
ental custom,  before  the  prime  minister  of 


UNSEEN  FORCES  37 

Egypt,  who,  though  unknown  to  them,  is  none 
other  than  Joseph. 

"  God  works  in  a  mysterious  way 

His  wonders  to  perform; 
He  plants  His  footsteps  in  the  sea, 
And  rides  upon  the  storm." 

Encamped  at  Dothan,  Elisha  had  succeeded 
in  thwarting  the  plans  of  Benhadad,  engaged  in 
warfare  with  Israel,  revealing  these  plans  to  the 
commander  of  the  army  of  the  living  God. 
Benhadad,  in  a  spirit  of  pent-up  rage,  sum- 
moned his  soldiery  into  his  presence,  demanding 
the  name  of  the  spy  or  spies  who  had  done  this 
thing.  Upon  being  informed  that  the  guilty 
party  was  not  within  their  ranks,  but  rather  was 
none  other  than  the  Prophet  Elisha,  possessed 
of  superior  powers  of  discernment,  Benhadad 
resolved  to  capture  and  put  to  death  Elisha,  at 
any  cost.  Accordingly,  during  the  night-time 
he  caused  the  mountain  surrounding  Dothan  to 
be  compassed  by  horses  and  chariots,  that  on  the 
morrow  he  might  accomplish  his  design. 

Very  early  the  next  morning,  the  young  man 
servant  of  the  prophet,  upon  going  out  to  re- 
connoiter,  came  rushing  pellmell  back  to  the 
prophet,  exclaiming :  "  My  Lord,  the  moun- 
tain is  full  of  horses  and  chariots."  And  Elisha 
prayed  the  Lord  to  open  the  eyes  of  the  young 


38  THE  LARGER  VISION 

man  that  he  might  see  what  he,  the  prophet, 
saw.  The  prayer  being  answered,  the  young 
man  was  amazed  to  behold  other  horses  and 
chariots  —  even  those  of  the  Most  High  —  and 
was  prepared  to  appreciate  the  words  of  his 
master :  "  Fear  not,  for  they  that  be  with  us 
are  more  than  they  that  be  with  them." 

Profane  history  stresses  the  fact  that  the 
Babylonian  captivity  —  the  three  deportations 
of  597,  586  and  581  B.C.,  in  which  some  50,000 
souls,  all  told,  were  made  exiles  for  70  years 
—  was  but  an  incident  in  history,  the  method 
of  the  Assyrians  in  dealing  with  revolting  and 
vassal  nations.  The  larger  vision,  however,  re- 
calls to  us  the  fact  that  had  Judah  been  true 
to  God  instead  of  wandering  off  into  spiritual 
apostasy,  the  mighty  Babylonian  hand,  reaching 
out  from  the  metropolis  of  antiquity  to  enslave 
the  inhabitants  of  Canaan,  had  been  paralyzed 
ere  it  had  harmed  the  Israel  of  God. 

See,  then,  an  unseen  force  —  the  hand  of  God 
in  history:  After  the  chastening  of  Israel  for 
seventy  years  (during  which  time  all  leanings 
towards  Polytheism  have  become  eliminated,  and 
the  repentant  hearts  of  exiles  are  found  reach- 
ing out  towards  the  living  God)  as  Cyrus  of 
Persia,  the  chosen  agency  of  the  Most  High, 
digs  a  canal  or  moat  about  Babylon  through 


UNSEEN  FORCES  39 

which  the  waters  of  the  Euphrates,  which  ran 
through  the  city,  were  diverted  on  that  memor- 
able night  during  the  bacchanalian  feast  of 
Belshazzar,  Cyrus'  army  marched  up  the  dry 
river  bed,  past  the  outer  walls  (300  feet  high 
and  87  feet  thick),  past  the  two  brazen-leaved 
gates  of  prophecy,  which  by  chance  had  been 
left  open  —  did  I  say  left  open  by  chance  ? 
rather  let  me  say  in  the  language  of  another: 
"  Eternal  God  that  chance  did  guide  " —  and 
without  a  single  blow  captured  the  famous  city, 
liberating  and  sending  the  exiles  back  to  their 
native  land. 

But  why  journey  so  far  afield  for  an  illustra- 
tion of  unseen  forces?  In  our  own  times,  dur- 
ing the  dark  days  of  the  "  Boxer  uprising," 
under  the  leadership  of  Rev.  Conger,  a  Meth- 
odist missionary,  the  American  legation  marched 
up  the  river  bed,  under  the  walls  of  the  city  of 
Peking,  and  when  China  awoke  to  the  real  situ- 
ation she  was  looking  into  the  mailed  fist  of 
the  allied  forces  of  Christendom  —  and  the  gate- 
ways of  China  for  all  time  swung  open  wide  to 
the  missionaries  of  the  cross  —  the  Boxer  up- 
rising proving  to  be  but  an  unseen  force  in 
which  "  the  wrath  of  man  was  made  to  praise 
Him." 

Unbelievers    have    caviled    at    "  the    unseen 


40  THE  LARGER  VISION 

forces  "  which  thundered  down  the  walls  of  Jeri- 
cho, the  plowshare  of  omnipotence  which 
carved  a  passageway  through  the  Red  Sea, 
"  the  stars  which  in  their  courses  fought  against 
Sisera,"  the  Hebrew  children  who  became  im- 
pervious to  the  flames  of  the  seven  times  heated 
fiery  furnace,  the  response  to  the  audacious  de- 
mand of  Joshua,  crying  out:  "Sun,  stand 
thou  still  upon  Gibeon,  and  thou,  moon,  in  the 
valley  of  Ajelon."  Even  believers  have  gone 
so  far  as  to  concede  the  absence  of  the  miracu- 
lous element  in  our  day. 

But  over  against  all  this  I  place  that  miracu- 
lous event  in  modern  history  connected  with  the 
Spanish-American  war,  in  which  the  fleet  of 
Admiral  Dewey  sailed  into  Manila  Harbor, 
smashing  the  fleet  of  the  enemy  to  kindling  wood 
without  the  loss  of  a  man  or  a  single  vessel; 
though,  if  the  leaden  hail  hurled  from  the  Span- 
ish forts  and  ships  had  been  placed  on  the 
decks  of  the  ships  of  Admiral  Dewey,  it  had 
sunken  them  by  its  sheer  weight. 

Have  we  not  witnessed  men  standing  amidst 
the  flames  of  trial  —  fiercer  than  the  seven  times 
heated  fiery  furnace  of  days  agone  —  becoming 
a  target  against  which  all  the  infernal  sugges- 
tions of  the  enemy  have  been  directed  —  coming 
forth  unscathed,  crying  out  in  tones  of  tri- 
umph :  "  None  of  these  things  move  me  "  ? 


UNSEEN  FORCES  41 

"  The  soul  that  on  Jesus  hath  leaned  for  repose, 

I'll  never,  no  never  desert  to  his  foes; 
That   soul,   though   all   hell   should   endeavor   to 

shake, 
I'll  never,  no  never,  no  never  forsake." 

II.    AN  ALL-CONQUERING  FAITH 

The  supremest  triumphs  achieved  by  men  in 
any  world  are  those  which  have  grown  out  of 
an  exercise  of  an  all-conquering  faith  laying 
hold  of  and  utilizing  unseen  forces  in  the  ac- 
complishment of  the  desired  end.  What  inspir- 
ation is  that  growing  out  of  a  contemplation  of 
the  exercise  of  faith  in  the  temporal  world  — 
faith  which  is  akin  to  that  found  in  the  spiritual 
realm  —  men  who  have  faith  in  themselves,  their 
environment  and  their  fellows,  the  absence  of 
which  makes  for  our  undoing!  The  greatest 
panics  which  our  nation  has  ever  experienced 
have  been  the  immediate  outgrowth  of  an 
absence  of  faith,  otherwise  called  confidence. 

We  are  scarcely  prepared  to  appreciate  the 
bounds  of  progress  made  by  the  world  in  the 
last  century.  If  some  aged  Rip  Van  Winkle 
belonging  to  a  former  age  were  to  rise  up  from 
his  long  sleep  and  were  to  behold  the  advanced 
stage  of  the  world  of  to-day,  he  would  rub  his 
eyes  in  bewilderment  and  wonder  where  the  world 
is  drifting  to. 


4&  THE  LARGER  VISION 

Inspired  by  visions  of  triumphs  viewed  from 
afar,  men  have  honeycombed  hills  and  moun- 
tains, laying  hold  of  unseen  forces  with  which 
they  have  bound  and  blended  the  world  into  a 
huge  whispering  gallery;  have  harnessed  Niag- 
aras, utilizing  unseen  forces  to  turn  the  wheels 
of  human  industry;  have  bored  gimlet  holes 
through  the  Berkshires  to  form  Hoosac  Tun- 
nels ;  digged  Panama  Canals ;  opened  up  dark 
continents;  conquered  the  air;  and  marching 
triumphantly  up  to  the  North  Pole,  "  trans- 
formed it  into  a  flagstaff  from  which  to  fly  the 
stars  and  stripes." 

Among  the  polar  regions  this  phenomenon  may 
be  observed,  icebergs  drifting  north  and  larger 
icebergs  drifting  south  at  the  same  time.  It 
was  one  of  these  which  became  responsible  for 
the  world-wide  disaster,  the  destruction  of  the 
"  Titanic  "  not  long  since. 

The  explanation  of  this  phenomenon  is  very 
simple.  The  ocean  is  made  up  of  upper  and 
under  currents.  Large  icebergs  reach  from 
five  to  eleven  times  farther  below  the  water  line 
than  they  rise  above  it.  The  smaller  icebergs, 
caught  in  the  arms  of  the  upper  currents,  are 
found  drifting  north,  whilst  the  larger  icebergs, 
reaching  far  beneath  the  surface,  are  caught 
up  in  the  arms  of  the  mightier  under  currents 
and  are  found  drifting  south. 


UNSEEN  FORCES  43 

And  herein  is  revealed  the  secret  to  the  suc- 
cess or  failure  of  men  in  the  spiritual  realm. 
How  many  times  we  have  witnessed,  with  heart- 
ache, this  spectacle  —  men  who  are  not  rooted 
and  grounded  in  the  faith  being  caught  up  in 
the  arms  of  worldliness,  drifting  towards  the 
polar  regions  in  the  spiritual  experience,  where 
abound  lukewarmness,  indifference,  apathy,  and 
ultimately  becoming  lost  to  the  church.  On 
the  other  hand,  how  we  have  become  enthralled, 
as  we  have  looked  upon  great  souls  —  men 
rooted  and  grounded  in  the  faith  reaching  down, 
down  beneath  the  upper  currents  of  worldliness ; 
down,  on  down,  until  they  are  gripped  by  might- 
ier under  currents,  the  unseen  forces  —  God's 
keeping  power,  marching  triumphantly  for- 
ward. 

Held  in  the  grip  of  these  unseen  currents  of 
spiritual  power,  men  have  developed  integrity, 
impervious  to  the  taint  of  graft,  greed,  vice; 
enabling  them  to  "  handle  all  the  world's  gold, 
without  any  of  its  dust  adhering  to  the  palms  of 
their  hands  " —  to  develop  nobility,  manhood, 
character  such  as  commands  the  admiration  and 
respect  of  their  fellows. 

Herein  is  found  the  explanation  to  the 
triumphant  experience  of  Job  in  direst  extrem- 
ity, when  even  his  wife  advises  him  to  "  curse 
God  and  die,"  as  he  rises  superior  to  all  the 


44  THE  LARGER  VISION 

forces  of  evil,  and  cries  out :  "  Though  He 
slay  me,  yet  will  I  trust  Him." 

Herein  likewise  is  found  the  secret  to  the 
faith  of  the  great  apostle,  Paul,  when  ship- 
wrecked, imprisoned,  stoned  and  left  for  dead 
by  the  wayside.  And  bending  over  his  pros- 
trate form  and  whispering  in  his  ear  the  words, 
"  Paul,  had  you  not  better  give  up  this  business 
of  propagating  the  kingdom  of  righteousness," 
in  a  whisper,  which  grows  into  a  mighty  shout, 
whose  echo  and  re-echo  is  heard  the  world 
around,  he  exclaims :  "  None  of  these  things 
move  me,"  he  was  held  in  the  grip  of  unseen 
spiritual  forces. 

Oh,  the  triumph  of  such  a  faith,  enabling  him 
to  stand  fast  in  the  faith,  to  rise  superior  to  his 
environment,  to  rise  on  wings  of  faith  until  he 
beholds  an  ultimate  and  spiritual  heritage  of 
"  dominions,  thrones,  principalities,  powers  " 
yonder,  to  be  his  for  aye  and  for  aye ! 

Oh,  the  unseen  forces  laying  hold  of  him, 
enabling  him  to  exclaim :  "  Who  shall  separate 
us  from  the  love  of  Christ;  shall  tribulation,  or 
distress,  or  persecution,  or  famine,  or  naked- 
ness, or  peril,  or  sword?  .  .  .  For  I  am  per- 
suaded that  neither  death,  nor  life,  nor  angels, 
nor  principalities,  nor  powers,  nor  things  pres- 
ent, nor  things  to  come,  nor  height,  nor  depth, 
nor  any  other  creature  shall  be  able  to  separate 


UNSEEN  FORCES  45 

us  from  the  love  of  God,  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus 
the  Lord!" 

III.    A  FINAL  TEST 

I  have  already  anticipated  a  little  the  con- 
cluding thought  in  this  chapter  —  the  final  test 
of  the  unseen  forces  round  and  about  God's 
Israel.  A  further  word  let  me  say,  by  way  of 
answer  to  a  question  which  has  been  asked  again 
and  again :  "  Will  these  unseen  forces,  this 
spiritual  heritage,  stand  the  final  test  ?  " 

I  might  answer  this  question  by  way  of  re- 
ferring to  the  ultimate  outcome,  in  which  the 
unseen  forces  of  the  Most  High  completely  put 
to  rout  the  forces  of  Benhadad,  yonder  at 
Dothan ;  or  by  which  the  forces  of  Sisera  were 
put  to  ignominious  confusion ;  or  the  ultimate 
triumph  of  Joshua,  as,  during  the  prolonged 
day,  he  added  the  finishing  touches  to  his  work 
in  the  destruction  of  the  last  remnant  of  his 
foes. 

I  choose  to  answer  by  way  of  directing  your 
attention  to  an  illustration  taken  from  "  Parish 
Astronomy." 

"  Imagine  an  immense  castle,  whose  builder, 
after  he  had  completed  it  and  had  locked  and 
bolted  all  the  doors,  threw  away  the  key. 

"  For  centuries,  men  wandering  on  the  out- 
side sought  in  vain  to  find  the  key.  One  day 


46  THE  LARGER  VISION 

one  of  these  searchers,  after  all  others  had 
despaired  of  finding  the  key,  stumbled  upon 
something  resembling  a  key,  and  holding  it  in 
his  hand,  murmured :  '  I  wonder  if  this  might 
not  be  the  long  lost  key?  ' 

"  With  fluttering  heart  and  trembling  hand 
he  approached  the  outer  door,  applied  the  key, 
and  the  outer  door  stood  ajar.  Passing  within, 
again  he  applied  the  key,  which  was  so  con- 
structed as  to  fit  any  lock,  and  door  after  door 
swung  ajar,  and  he  entered  in  and  enjoyed  to 
the  full  the  wonders  of  the  castle." 

The  author  of  "  Parish  Astronomy "  has 
made  the  application  of  this  illustration  to  the 
great  castle  of  the  skies.  The  key  referred  to 
is  that  of  gravitation  which,  held  in  the  hand  of 
Newton,  unlocked  the  outer  gateways,  and  in  the 
hands  of  his  successors  unlocked  all  the  prin- 
cipal gateways  to  the  skies  —  doors  of  oak, 
doors  of  iron,  doors  of  brass,  ah1  swinging  wide 
open.  But  by-and-by  some  doubting  Thomas 
comes  along  and  says,  "  Mr.  Newton,  don't  you 
think  you  may  be  mistaken  about  this  key  — 
off  yonder  to  the  right  are  some  minor  doors 
which  you  have  not  tested  —  off  yonder  to  your 
left  are  some  minor  doors  which  you  have  not 
tested  —  after  all,  may  it  not  be  that  you  are 
mistaken  about  this  key  of  gravitation?  " 

And    the    author    of    "  Parish    Astronomy " 


UNSEEN  FORCES  47 

turns  on  this  man  and  asks,  "  You  old  fool,  when 
did  you  get  out  of  the  insane  asylum?  " 

To  still  another  castle  would  I  apply  this 
illustration  —  even  the  mysterious  castle  of  the 
spiritual  life.  With  the  key  of  faith  in  our 
hands  we  have  opened  doors  of  oak,  doors  of 
iron,  doors  of  brass,  doors  of  unnumbered  and 
difficult  experiences.  Out  yonder  is  the  outer 
door  of  regeneration,  which  on  application  of 
the  key  of  faith  has  swung  ajar;  following  this 
is  the  door  of  justification,  sanctification  —  the 
doors  of  affliction,  sorrow,  persecution,  etc., — 
and  all  have  swung  open  wide. 

And  now  perchance  some  destructive  higher 
critic  is  found  coming  our  way,  who  suggests 
to  us  that  after  all  we  may  be  mistaken  about 
this  key  of  faith  —  that  out  yonder  are  some 
minor  experiences  to  the  right,  and  over  yonder 
some  other  and  minor  experiences  to  the  left  not 
opened  —  that  perhaps  we  have  been  deluded  by 
the  possibilities  of  this  key  of  faith. 

And,  not  using  the  harsh  expression  of  the 
author  of  "  Parish  Astronomy,"  I  turn  to  this 
would  be  destroyer  of  my  faith  and  say :  "  Get 
out  of  my  way,  my  friend,  while  I  shout  with 
Alfred  Cookman :  '  I  am  sweeping  through  the 
gates,  washed  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb ; '  while 
I  shout  with  the  apostle  Paul :  '  I  am  now 
ready  to  be  offered  and  the  time  of  my  depart- 


48  THE  LARGER  VISION 

ure  is  at  hand;  I  have  fought  a  good  fight,  I 
have  finished  my  course,  I  have  kept  the  faith; 
henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for  me  a  crown  of 
righteousness,  which  the  Lord,  the  righteous 
Judge,  will  give  me  in  that  day;  and  not  unto 
me  only,  but  unto  all  them  which  love  His  ap- 
pearing.' 

"  Get  out  of  my  way  while  I  shout  the  praises 
of  God  here,  and  make  ready  to  join  the  ran- 
somed hosts  as  they  shout  yonder :  *  Unto  Him 
that  loved  us,  and  washed  us  from  our  sins  in 
His  own  blood,  and  hath  made  us  priests  and 
kings  unto  God  and  His  Father;  to  Him  be 
glory  and  dominion  forever  and  ever.  Amen.'  " 


WITH  STARS  AS  TEACHERS 


"  Go  out  beneath  the  arched  heavens  at  night  and 
say,  if  you  can, '  There  is  no  God.'  Pronounce  that 
dreadful  blasphemy,  and  each  star  above  you  will 
reproach  the  unbroken  darkness  of  your  intellect; 
every  voice  that  floats  upon  the  night  winds  will 
bewail  your  utter  hopelessness  and  folly." 

— THE  ROYAL  PATH  OF  LIFE. 

"  See  where  the  sun,  with  face  of  unsufferable 
splendor,  goes  swimming  through  the  day;  see 
where  the  soft  and  silver  moon,  with  fleets  of  stars, 
goes  swimming  through  the  night  —  what  eloquent 
silence.  Our  dinned  ears  and  hearts  are  soothed. 
Our  petty  cares  and  excitements  are  hushed.  Both 
body  and  soul  are  insensibly  calmed  and  refreshed 
as  we  gaze  into  the  immeasurable  silence." 

— ECCE  COELUM. 

"  And  they  that  be  wise  shall  shine  as  the  bright- 
ness of  the  firmament;  and  they  that  turn  many 
to  righteousness,  as  the  stars  forever  and  ever." 

—  PSALMS,  12:3. 


IV 
WITH  STARS  AS  TEACHERS 

Seated  in  my  room  in  "  Hotel  Jerusalem " 
one  evening,  after  a  full  day  of  sight-seeing  in 
the  holy  city,  busied  with  my  notebook  (the 
tourist  who  fails  to  take  notes  loses  much  that 
is  of  value,  once  the  journey  is  ended)  my  little 
traveling  companion  (Mrs.  L.),  who  was  out  on 
the  balcony,  called  to  me ;  "  O,  dear,  do  come  out 
and  see  the  stars ;  I  never  saw  them  look  so 
beautiful  before." 

Passing  out  where  she  was,  I  found  it  to  be 
true:  the  stars  appeared  to  be  much  nearer  the 
earth,  and  to  shine  brighter  than  I  had  ever  seen 
them  in  our  Western  Hemisphere;  it  seemed, 
indeed,  as  if  they  were  endeavoring  to  be  real 
neighborly  —  desirous  of  engaging  us  in  con- 
versation. 

If  we  have  eyes  to  see,  ears  to  hear,  and 
hearts  to  feel,  our  environs  of  earth  and  sea  and 
sky,  in  a  language  not  as  difficult  to  master  as 
the  dead  languages,  "  will  be  found  eager  to  talk 
with  us,  imparting  knowledge  such  as  we  may 
not  elsewhere  acquire." 

The   greatest   o»f   all   teachers,    the  Master, 
51 


52  THE  LARGER  VISION 

emphasized  this  thought  one  day.  Reaching 
down  and  plucking  a  lily  of  the  field,  and  hold- 
ing it  in  His  hand,  He  said :  "  Consider  the 
lily,  how  it  grows."  That  is  to  say,  if  we  will 
but  take  the  pains  to  learn  the  language  of  the 
lily,  it  will  become  an  eloquent  instructor  touch- 
ing spiritual  growth,  development,  maturity. 

Having  learned  the  language  of  the  brook, 
Tennyson  was  found  sitting  at  the  feet  of  this 
instructor  in  the  natural  world,  enjoying  a  rare 
companionship  the  while  — 

"  I  come  from  haunts  of  coot  and  hern ; 

I  make  a  sudden  sally, 
And  sparkle  out  among  the  fern, 
To  bicker  down  the  valley. 

"  By  thirty  hills  I  hurry  down, 

Or  slip  between  the  ridges, 

By  twenty  thorps,  a  little  town, 

And  half  a  hundred  bridges. 

"  I  chatter,  chatter  as  I  flow 

To  join  the  brimming  river; 
For  men  may  come  and  men  may  go, 
But  I  go  on  forever." 

Is  it  too  much  to  say  that  the  brook  was  trying 
to  impart  to  Tennyson,  and  through  him  to  us 
all,  the  importance  of  a  recognition  of  the  doc- 
trine of  "  eternal  progression  "  ? 


WITH  STARS  AS  TEACHERS       53 

Under  the  breath  of  old  Boreas,  the  ocean, 
lashed  into  a  perfect  cauldron,  may  be  heard 
sobbing  out  in  a  voice  resembling  that  of  human 
heartbreak ;  but  when  the  storm  is  o'er,  and  with 
glassy  surface  reflecting  the  glory  of  clear  skies, 
the  sea  becomes  a  sublime  symbol,  reminding  us 
of  the  time  when  "  there  shall  be  no  more  seas 
of  sorrow  —  when  God  shall  wipe  away  all  tears 
from  all  eyes." 

Oh,  the  melodies  of  winged  songsters !  Oh, 
the  music  of  singing  pines !  Oh,  the  richer 
melodies  of  the  stars  — 

"  Forever  singing,  as  they  shine, 
'  The  hand  that  made  us  is  divine/  ' 

David  was  wont  to  engage  in  conversation 
with  the  stars,  taking  his  first  lessons  when  a 
lad,  watching  over  a  handful  of  sheep  committed 
to  his  keeping ;  and  later,  after  a  strenuous  day 
in  performance  of  the  duties  of  ruler  of  the 
nation,  feeling  "  the  call  of  the  wild,"  perhaps 
in  thought,  perhaps  literally,  hastening  to  the 
mountain  fastnesses  to  look  into  the  faces  of  his 
boyhood  companions ;  and  coming  back  to  give 
expression  to  the  sublime  declaration :  "  The 
heavens  declare  the  glory  of  God,  etc." 

Had  David  lived  in  our  day  and  been  per- 
mitted to  look,  not  through  the  natural  eye, 
beholding  six  thousand  stars,  but  rather  through 


5*  THE  LARGER  VISION 

the  great  telescope  of  Lick  Observatory,  Cali- 
fornia, beholding  approximately  a  thousand  mil- 
lion starry  worlds ;  aye,  had  David  been  per- 
mitted to  carry  out  the  suggestion  of  the  author 
of  "  Parish  Astronomy,"  taking  his  position  on 
the  last  discovered  star,  and,  looking  through  a 
telescope  with  sweep  of  vision  a  thousand-fold 
greater  than  that  at  Lick  Observatory,  gazing 
upon  the  countless  millions  of  cluster  systems 
and  group  systems  and  planet  systems  and  sun 
systems  and  world  systems  spread  out  in  pano- 
ramic vision,  beggaring  description  —  what 
then?  Then  I  have  thought  with  enthralled 
soul  he  had  exclaimed :  "  How  great  is  God, 
how  insignificant  is  man ! " 

The  apostle  Paul  was  likewise  given  to  culti- 
vating the  acquaintance  of  the  stars,  and,  with 
soul  flooded  with  inspiration  growing  out  of  one 
of  these  experiences,  in  which  the  stars  suggested 
to  him  a  glorious  truth  touching  the  resurrec- 
tion, cried  out :  "  There  is  one  glory  of  the 
sun,  and  another  glory  of  the  moon,  and  another 
glory  of  the  stars ;  for  one  star  differeth  from 
another  star  in  glory. 

"  So  also  is  the  resurrection  of  the  dead.  It 
is  sown  in  corruption,  it  is  raised  in  incorrup- 
tion ;  it  is  sown  in  dishonor,  it  is  raised  in  glory ; 
it  is  sown  in  weakness,  it  is  raised  in  power;  it 


WITH  STARS  AS  TEACHERS       55 

is  sown  a  natural  body,  it  is  raised  a  spiritual 
body." 

And  yet,  who  among  us  can  bring  himself  to 
believe  that  Paul  did  not  learn,  as  we  may  learn, 
from  the  stars  other  lessons  of  vital  importance 
touching  human  experience  lying  this  side  of  the 
grave?  Hence  the  theme  of  this  chapter: 
"  With  Stars  as  Teachers." 

I.    THE  MESSAGE  OF  THE  SUN 

Seated  at  the  feet  of  the  sun,  let  us  learn  the 
sublime  message  which  this  instructor  in  the 
natural  world  would  whisper  in  our  ears.  To 
be  sure,  there  are  many  messages,  many  sym- 
bolic truths,  growing  out  of  a  more  intimate 
acquaintance  with  the  sun;  it  may  surprise  you 
to  know  that  no  less  than  one  hundred  and 
twenty-one  times  do  the  inspired  writers  of  the 
Bible  direct  our  attention  to  symbolic  truths  all 
borrowed  from  the  sun. 

You  have  perhaps  noted  the  value  of  the 
headlight  on  the  locomotive.  How  the  engineer, 
gripping  the  throttle  of  the  great  engine  on  a 
dark  night,  would  be  haunted  by  "  ghosts  of 
doubts  and  fears,"  in  the  absence  of  this  medium 
of  illumination  —  conscious  all  the  time  of  the 
fact  that  some  unseen  obstacle  lying  on  the 
track  might  wreck  the  train,  entailing  a  fearful 
loss  of  life  and  property. 


56  THE  LARGER  VISION 

A  similar  service  is  rendered  by  the  electric 
headlight  on  the  modern  automobile  throwing 
its  flood  of  light  in  advance  of  the  machine,  pro- 
tecting the  occupants  and  protecting  other  and 
approaching  vehicles. 

Have  you  ever  watched  a  searchlight  exhibi- 
tion of  a  great  war  fleet,  on  the  high  seas  ?  For 
a  distance  of  twenty  miles  great  arms  of  light, 
encircling  the  fleet,  seem  to  be  searching  out  an 
approaching  enemy  —  a  spectacular  and  inspir- 
ing pastime  in  time  of  peace,  but  a  source  of 
invaluable  protection  in  time  of  war. 

But  a  greater  sheen  is  that  projected  by  the 
sun.  Across  the  mighty  abyss  of  space,  at  a 
distance  of  37,000,000  miles,  it  lights  up  Mer- 
cury ;  at  a  distance  of  68,000,000  miles  Venus  is 
lighted  up ;  at  a  distance  of  95,000,000  miles  our 
earth  is  illumined;  at  a  distance  of  140,000,000 
miles  Mars  is  furnished  with  illumination ;  at  a 
distance  of  495,000,000  miles  Jupiter  is  lighted ; 
at  a  distance  of  1,800,000,000  miles  Uranus  is 
illuminated;  whilst  at  a  distance  of  2,800,000,- 
000  miles  Neptune  is  furnished  light. 

We  have  thought  it  a  marvelous  thing  in 
seven  minutes  we  flash  a  telegraphic  message 
from  continent  to  continent ;  but  if  we  were  able 
to  locate  a  telegraphic  station  on  the  rim  of  the 
physical  universe,  it  would  require  fifteen  years 
to  send  a  message  to  our  earth. 


WITH  STARS  AS  TEACHERS       57 

What  a  sublime  symbol,  then,  have  we  herein 
of  the  source  of  spiritual  illumination  ordained 
of  God  to  illumine  the  moral  world.  This  was 
the  thought  which  the  psalmist  had  in  mind 
when  he  declared :  "  For  the  Lord  God  is  a 
sun  and  shield ;  the  Lord  will  give  grace  and 
glory ;  no  good  thing  will  He  withhold  from 
them  that  walk  uprightly."  (Psalm  84:11.) 

A  similar  thought  likewise  was  that  held  in 
the  mind  of  the  last  of  the  prophetic  band, 
Malachi :  "  But  unto  you  that  fear  my  name 
shall  the  sun  of  righteousness  arise  with  healing 
in  his  wings ;  and  ye  shall  go  forth,  and  grow 
up  as  calves  of  the  stall."  (Malachi  4:£.) 

Amazing  thought  that  you  and  I  may  have 
our  pathways  leading  from  earth  to  glory, 
illumined  by  the  white  light  of  gospel  truth,  re- 
vealing every  obstacle  lying  in  our  way,  whilst, 
with  a  shield  of  light  impervious  to  the  fiery 
darts  of  the  enemy,  march  forward,  triumphant 
in  the  faith;  and  at  the  last,  like  the  prophet 
Elijah,  in  a  chariot  of  light  ride  up  the  shining 
steeps,  and  enter  the  eternal  City,  forever  to 
enjoy  the  presence  of  the  Author  of  spiritual 
illumination. 

In  the  face  of  such  encompassment  of  light, 
is  it  not  the  marvel  of  marvels  that  even  the 
saints  of  God  are  betimes  held  in  the  relentless 
grip  of  doubts  and  fears,  afraid  lest  there  be 


58  THE  LARGER  VISION 

not  light  enough  to  furnish  a  solution  to  those 
mysterious  problems  growing  out  of  human  ex- 
perience; that  sometimes  we  seem  to  stand  on 
"  an  earth  that  is  iron,  gazing  up  into  a  heaven 
of  brass,  whilst  no  cross  of  victory,  like  unto 
that  of  Constantine  of  old,  is  beheld  painted 
against  the  northern  sky  "  ? 

Imagine  the  tiny  flower  growing  by  the  way- 
side, fearful  lest  there  be  not  light  enough  in 
the  sun  for  its  use.  Imagine  the  snowflake 
hovering  over  the  shoulder  of  the  great  moun- 
tain, afraid  lest  the  mountain  be  not  strong 
enough  to  bear  its  weight. 

That  intellectual  millionaire,  Bishop  Quayle, 
has  aptly  used  this  illustration: 

"  Suppose  the  cup  which  holds  Lake  Tahoe  were 
dry  as  dust,  with  great,  deep  hollows  which  the 
hand  of  God,  in  moments  of  laughter,  had  hollowed 
out  —  suppose  Lake  Tahoe  were  dry  as  a  skull. 
But  yonder  stand  the  mountains  with  snow-crowned 
summits,  and  adown  the  mountain  gullies  sing  the 
laughing  streams;  and  the  inroads  of  the  sky  and 
the  adjacency  of  the  mountains  and  the  shelter  of 
the  pines  give  to  the  snowdrifts  all  —  all  that  is 
wanted  to  fill  Lake  Tahoe  to  the  full  with  water. 

"  Tell  me,  my  friends,  is  there  any  need  for  Lake 
Tahoe  to  be  dry?  Tell  me  this:  when  the  moun- 
tains are  ready  to  give  their  snowdrifts,  and  the 
streams  singing  their  way  down  the  mountains  are 
ready  to  furnish  their  waters,  and  the  pines  sobbing 


WITH  STARS  AS  TEACHERS       59 

out,  '  We  are  ready  to  fill  thee,  O  Lake  Tahoe,  we 
are  waiting  to  make  thee  a  drinking  cup  for  the 
gods/  is  there  any  reason  why  Lake  Tahoe  should 
be  empty?" 

O,  child  of  earth,  beset  by  doubts  and  fears, 
fling  open  wide  the  doors  and  windows  of  the 
soul,  and  light,  abundance  of  light,  shall  flood 
all  thy  life,  and  no  darkness  at  all  shall  remain, 
for  God  Himself  is  the  light. 

II.    SHINING  WITH  BORROWED  LIGHT 

It  is  a  well-known  fact  that,  whilst  the  sun 
is  the  center  of  the  solar  universe,  there  are 
other  centers  which,  shining  with  borrowed  rays 
of  light,  illumine  the  orbs  encircling  them.  The 
moon  is  an  illustration  of  this  thought.  Who 
has  not  been  charmed  by  the  glory  of  a  perfect 
night,  with  meandering  books  and  shimmering 
lakes,  wind-parted  boughs  of  the  forest,  and 
silver  rivers  —  the  result  of  moonbeams  spilled 
upon  the  earth  —  but  all  this  is  reflected  light, 
light  borrowed  from  the  sun. 

In  like  manner,  while  Christ  is  the  center  of 
the  moral  universe,  responsible  for  all  the  spir- 
itual illumination  requisite  to  the  uplift  and  re- 
demption of  the  world,  the  work  itself  is 
accomplished  through  the  medium  of  a  glorified 
humanity  —  glorified  in  that  He  has  elected  that 
we  should  become  the  radiating  centers  through 


60  THE  LARGER  VISION 

which  spiritual  illumination  is  given  to  the 
world. 

He  elects,  not  that  legions  of  angels  or  arch- 
angels, who  might  well  covet  the  honor  and 
privilege,  shall  become  the  centers,  giving  out 
to  a  lost  world  the  light  of  help  and  hope  and 
heaven;  rather  does  He  commit  to  mortality 
this  sublime  mission. 

The  man  of  God,  standing  behind  the  sacred 
desk,  wins  for  himself  stars  of  rejoicing  only 
in  as  far  as  he  reflects  the  true  light  of  God. 

The  captains  of  industry,  the  leaders  of  the 
social  realm,  the  recognized  spirits  of  the  pro- 
fessional world,  intellectual  giants,  the  states- 
man wielding  the  scepter  of  supremacy  over  his 
constituency,  the  men  who  write  the  world's 
poetry,  fling  upon  the  canvas  pictures  which  be- 
come master-pieces  —  in  a  word,  from  the  high- 
est to  the  lowest  centers  of  influence  wielded 
over  the  lives  of  their  fellows,  make  for  the 
world's  highest  civilization  only  in  as  far  as 
they  reflect  the  light  of  the  Christ  of  God. 

The  mother,  endowed  with  that  indescribable 
something  which  for  want  of  a  better  name  we 
call  mother-love,  reflecting  the  true  light, 
wields  an  influence  which  extends  all  the  way 
through  this  life,  which  goes  down  into  the 
grave,  which  grows  up  into  eternity,  which  is 
never  lost.  Hence  it  is  that,  impelled  by  a 


WITH  STARS  AS  TEACHERS       61 

flood  of  sacred  memories,  strong  men,  wending 
their  way  to  the  city  of  the  dead,  stand  over  a 
grave,  grown  green,  to  shed  a  tear  and  mutely 
confess,  "  All  that  I  am  or  ever  expect  to  be, 
under  God,  I  owe  to  the  one  who  lies  here;" 
and  hence  it  is  that  aged  men,  whose  pilgrimage 
is  nearly  ended,  lingering  by  the  river's  brink, 
are  heard  to  murmur,  almost  unconsciously,  as 
again  in  thought  they  kneel  at  mother's  knee: 
"  '  Now  I  lay  me  down  to  sleep,'  "  or,  "  *  Our 
Father  who  art  in  heaven.' ' 

"  And  I,  if  I  be  uplifted,  will  draw  all  men 
unto  me "  is  but  another  way  of  saying, 
"  Through  the  radiating  centers  of  human  life 
I  purpose  reflecting  that  light  which  shall  make 
for  the  uplift  and  redemption  of  a  lost  world." 

III.     UNNAMED  STARS 

Astronomers  have  mentioned  but  a  few  names 
of  stars  which  adorn  the  heavens ;  such  as  the 
sun,  Mercury,  Mars,  Jupiter,  Uranus,  Saturn, 
the  moon,  etc.,  which,  like  monarchs  of  light, 
stand  out  conspicuously. 

Some  one  has  said:  "Among  the  countless 
millions  of  worlds  which  adorn  the  skies  there 
are  less  than  twenty  of  the  first  magnitude; 
among  the  countless  numbers  of  men  who  have 
inhabited  this  earth,  there  are  less  than  twenty 
of  the  first  magnitude." 


62  THE  LARGER  VISION 

Did  you  ever  pause  to  inquire  why  the  names 
of  all  the  stars  are  not  given  —  why  countless 
millions  of  orbs  are  unnamed?  The  answer  is 
found  in  the  fact  that  approximately  a  thousand 
million  orbs  belong  to  the  starry  world,  and  that 
an  attempt  to  name  all  of  these  would  bankrupt 
human  nomenclature.  None  besides  Him  who 
sits  upon  the  circle  of  the  universe,  could  coin 
sufficient  names  to  go  round. 

Sufficient  for  His  purpose  —  a  purpose  which 
bulks  big  with  significance  —  is  the  fact  that  all 
these  countless  orbs  unite  to  form  the  sum  total 
of  that  physical  glory  forming  a  background  for 
our  world  home. 

In  like  manner,  the  countless  millions  of  faith- 
ful souls  whose  dwelling-place  is  this  earth  must 
live  and  die,  unknown  to  the  world  at  large.  But 
He  knows  all  of  our  names  —  He  does  not  for- 
get to  reward  the  giving  of  "  a  cup  of  cold 
water  "  to  a  thirsty  soul ;  and  He  has  ordained 
that  the  combined  love  and  devotion,  the 
merged  fidelity  of  all  the  saints,  shall  constitute 
the  sum  total  of  that  glory  growing  out  of  a 
redeemed  humanity. 

He  knows  —  oh,  the  music  of  the  remem- 
brance, echoing  and  re-echoing  in  the  human 
soul  —  He  knows  ;  and  that  will  suffice  for  us  all. 
Just  as  the  trained  eye  of  the  artist  detects  the 
slightest  stroke  or  shade  of  pencil  requisite  to 


WITH  STARS  AS  TEACHERS       63 

the  masterpiece  which  enthralls  the  hearts  of 
men  possessed  of  the  gesthetic  taste;  just  as  the 
musical  director  detects  the  slightest  inharmony 
of  a  single  voice  among  a  thousand  voices  ren- 
dering the  great  oratorio,  the  divine  Artist 
takes  note  of  each  line  of  duty,  each  shade  of 
character  reflecting  His  life,  and  takes  note  of 
the  slightest  inharmony  of  any  single  life  out 
of  tune  with  the  Infinite. 

And  what  matters  the  absence  of  commen- 
dation of  the  world  if  at  the  last  He  shall  look 
over  our  life-work,  and  stamp  it  with  the  seal 
of  never-fading  glory :  "  Well  done." 


THE  REGAL  SPIRIT 


"  Edison  knows  more  about  phonographs  in  a 
minute  than  Socrates  would  in  a  million  years;  and 
Socrates,  who  constructed  a  raft  of  reason  on  which 
he  put  out  into  the  dark  sea,  knew  more  about  the 
arguments  for  immortality  in  a  minute  than  Edison 
will  in  another  million  years." 

—  HILLIS. 

"  Scientists  tell  us  that  the  dewdrop  reposing  in 
the  heart  of  a  rose  reflects  approximately  a  thou- 
sand million  worlds  —  the  vast  physical  universe. 
The  regal  spirit,  having  '  eternity  set  in  the  heart/ 
reflects  dominions,  thrones,  principalities,  powers 
—  the  ageless  life  beyond  the  stars." 

~~~  .L/. 

"  For  all  things  are  yours,  whether  Paul  or 
Apollos,  or  Cephas,  or  the  world,  or  life,  or  death, 
or  things  present,  or  things  to  come  —  all  are  yours 
and  ye  are  Christ's  and  Christ  is  God's." 

—  PAUL. 


THE  REGAL  SPIRIT 

From  my  study  window  one  day  I  saw  a 
number  of  schoolboys  lining  up  on  the  street, 
two  and  two  abreast,  under  the  leadership  of  a 
little  lad.  Glancing  down  the  line,  I  noted  the 
fact  that  many  of  the  boys  were  larger  and  older 
than  their  leader  —  that  ever  and  anon  they  were 
found  playing  pranks  on  each  other,  getting  out 
of  line ;  and  then  the  little  lad  would  swing  his 
arms  and  stamp  his  foot,  crying  out  sharply, 
"  Back  into  line,  back  into  line,"  and  they 
obeyed  him  instantly. 

And  I  could  not  resist  the  question,  Why  do 
not  some  of  these  older  and  larger  lads  rebel? 
Why  do  they  not  turn  to  the  little  lad  and  say : 
"  We  are  older  and  larger  than  you ;  you  get 
into  line,  and  we  will  assume  leadership  "  ? 

They  did  not  do  so  because  school  lads,  like 
older  folks,  have  ever  recognized  the  spirit  of 
leadership the  regal  spirit. 

Note  then  this  spirit  of  mastery  asserting 
itself  in  later  years,  for  it  has  been  truthfully 

said: 

67 


68  THE  LARGER  VISION 

"  Men  are  only  boys  grown  tall, 
Hearts  don't  change  much  after  all." 

Now  we  see  the  little  lad  possessed  of  the  regal 
spirit  grown  to  manhood,  taking  his  rightful 
place  —  the  place  accorded  him  by  the  world 
just  as  naturally  as  it  was  accorded  him  by  his 
playmates  —  as  a  world  leader. 

Maybe  it  is  in  the  literary  world,  where  the 
pen  takes  the  place  of  swinging  arms  and 
stamping  feet,  shaping  and  molding  human 
thought,  causing  ennobling  sentiment  to  swing 
into  line;  for  there  stands  in  the  intellectual 
forum  a  recognized  genius. 

Maybe  it  is  on  the  field  of  battle,  where  a 
single  flash  of  the  eye  transforms  a  whole  regi- 
ment into  so  many  fighting  demons,  causing  them 
to  exclaim:  "Isn't  he  splendid?  We  will  fol- 
low him  anywhere." 

It  may  be  in  the  industrial  world  where  as  a 
captain  of  industry,  he  becomes  the  genius  mak- 
ing for  "  a  greater  New  York,"  "  a  greater 
Chicago,"  a  greater  city  in  which  he  has  taken 
up  his  abode. 

Or  it  may  be  in  the  spiritual  realm,  where  a 
great  soul,  possessed  of  the  regal  spirit,  in  times 
of  spiritual  apostasy  has  become  responsible  for 
a  wave  of  transforming  influence  and  power 
which  has  given  to  the  world  a  heavenward  tend- 
ency, enriching  humankind  beyond  compare. 


THE  REGAL  SPIRIT  69 

I.    THE  KINGDOM  WITHIN 

One  of  the  most  startling  revelations  of  truth 
given  to  the  early  disciples  was  that  which  was 
designed  to  completely  disillusion  them  as  to  the 
character  of  the  kingdom  which  Jesus  came  to 
establish  in  the  earth. 

They  had  dreamed  of  a  great  temporal  king- 
dom which  should  eclipse  and  absorb  all  the 
other  kingdoms  of  the  earth,  of  which  the  Mas- 
ter should  be  the  Head  and  they  the  visible  rep- 
resentatives. What  a  king  He  would  be,  He 
who  had  but  to  speak  to  the  howling  winds  and 
roaring  waves,  and  they  were  rocked  to  sleep  — 
what  power  to  thunder  into  silence  and  submis- 
sion all  adverse  forces  —  He  who  had  but  to  will 
that  it  should  be  so,  and  five  loaves  and  two 
fishes  became  multiplied,  furnished  a  meal  for 
five  thousand  people,  suggestive  of  the  power 
at  hand  requisite  to  furnish  all  needed  resources 
of  a  mighty  kingdom.  What  a  king  He  would 
make !  And  they  would  be  the  chief  office- 
holder in  this  kingdom.  Peter  would  doubtless 
be  made  prime  minister,  John  would  become 
secretary  of  state,  Judas  secretary  of  the  treas- 
ury, and  the  other  disciples  would  be  given 
other  portfolios.  What  a  setting  for  the 
revelation  of  truth  destined  to  paralyze  all  these 
dreams  of  earthly  supremacy  on  the  part  of  the 


70  THE  LARGER  VISION 

disciples  was  that  afforded  by  the  triumphal 
entry  of  Jesus  into  Jerusalem! 

The  most  famous  highway  leading  into  the 
eternal  city,  Rome,  was  known  as  the  "  Appian 
Way."  Over  this  highway  had  marched  Han- 
nibal at  the  head  of  the  very  flower  of  the  Car- 
thaginian army,  bent  on  the  conquest  of  Rome. 
Up  this  highway  came  the  flying  messengers, 
announcing  the  result  of  the  battle  at  Philippi 
—  the  fall  of  the  republic.  Over  this  highway 
came  the  noted  prisoner,  St.  Paul,  chained  to 
the  wrist  of  a  Roman  soldier,  to  be  tried  before 
Nero,  whilst  across  the  selfsame  historic  high- 
way came  the  cohorts  of  Aurelius,  accompanied 
by  the  noted  captive,  Zenobia,  bound  in  golden 
chains. 

But  a  more  significant  highway-to-be  was 
that  leading  from  Bethlehem  to  the  holy  city, 
Jerusalem,  over  which  journeyed  the  Christ  of 
God,  on  Palm  Sunday  to  attend  the  feast  of  the 
Passover. 

On  the  way,  Jesus  paused,  and  addressing 
two  of  the  disciples,  bade  them  proceed  to  a 
neighboring  village,  doubtless  Bethpage,  where 
they  should  find  an  ass's  colt,  and  to  loose  and 
bring  the  colt  to  Him,  telling  them  that  if  the 
owner  objected  to  this  procedure  to  say;  "The 
Lord  hath  need  of  him."  "The  Lord  hath 
need  of  him  " —  what  an  emphatic  emphasis  of 


THE  REGAL  SPIRIT  71 

the  sublime  truth  that,  dominated  by  the  regal 
spirit,  the  sons  of  men  shall  ever  assume  pro- 
prietorship of  all  that  makes  for  the  advance- 
ment of  the  interests  of  the  kingdom ;  and  that, 
conscious  of  the  superior  demands  of  this  spirit 
of  regality,  all  men  shall  gladly  asquiesce. 

Now  the  holy  city,  obscured  by  the  shoulder 
of  Mt.  Olivet,  hoves  into  view;  the  procession 
moves  slowly  downward  into  the  Valley  of  Jehos- 
ophat,  passes  Gethsemane  —  when,  as  if  by 
magic,  the  Master,  in  prophetic  manner  riding 
an  ass's  colt,  accompanied  by  the  disciples,  is 
surrounded  by  surging  multitudes,  three  mil- 
lions strong,  who  have  come  up  to  attend  the 
Passover;  and  crossing  the  brook  Kedron  they 
approach  the  gates  of  the  city,  when  suddenly 
by  common  impulse  the  vast  throng  seems  to 
have  become  obsessed  by  the  character  of  the 
Christ,  and  in  a  voice  resembling  the  sound  of 
many  waters  cries  out :  "  Hosanna,  hosanna, 
blessed  is  He  that  cometh  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord." 

Now  the  scribes  and  Pharisees  grind  their 
teeth  in  rage,  recognizing  the  fact  that  the 
crucial  moment  has  arrived  —  that  Jesus  but 
needs  to  make  a  sign,  utter  a  single  syllable, 
and  the  crown  of  royalty  shall  rest  upon  His 
head.  The  desciples'  joy  of  anticipation  knows 
no  bounds  —  the  Master  will  be  made  king  — 


78  THE  LARGER  VISION 

His  loyal  sub j  ects  are  round  about  Him  — • 
their  dreams  of  supremacy  are  at  the  point  of 
fulfillment  — 

And  lo,  the  Master  turns  away,  refusing  to 
avail  Himself  of  the  opportunity  at  hand,  walk- 
ing  soberly  into  the  temple,  an  act  which  pro- 
claimed in  tones  louder  than  thunder  crashing 
along  the  mountains  of  the  skies  that  His  king- 
dom is  not  of  this  world,  dashing  the  hopes  of 
temporal  supremacy  of  His  followers  forever 
to  the  earth ;  whilst  for  the  first  time  the  real 
significance  of  His  words,  "  The  kingdom  is 
within  you,"  dawned  upon  them. 

"  The  kingdom  within " —  henceforth  this 
declaration  is  to  become  a  world  slogan,  grow- 
ing out  of  which  shall  be  the  sweetest  music  of 
earth  or  heaven,  even  the  music  of  a  world's 
redemption. 

With  souls  enthralled  by  this  music,  the  fol- 
lowers of  the  Master  have  witnessed  "  His 
pierced  hand  lifting  the  gates  of  empires  off 
their  hinges,  turning  the  stream  of  centuries 
out  of  its  channel,"  making  possible  that  glor- 
ious by-product  of  modern  civilization  in  which, 
in  our  God-blessed  republic,  every  worthy  citi- 
zen has  become  an  uncrowned  king.  What  an 
inspiration  growing  out  of  the  procession  of 
these  uncrowned  kings ;  the  canal  driver,  the 
tanner,  the  rail  splitter,  "  cutting  their  way 


THE  REGAL  SPIRIT  73 

through  poverty's  gloomy  woodland  out  into  the 
open  day  "  ! 

Walking  beneath  the  shadow  of  that  massive 
granite  block  known  as  Marshall  Field's,  Chi- 
cago, we  are  reminded  of  the  dream  of  a  poor 
young  man  entering  the  city  to  become  a  clerk 
in  a  second-  or  third-rate  establishment,  later  a 
larger  establishment;  and  by-and-by,  as  he 
walks  or  drives  along  the  street,  the  captains 
of  industry  are  found  bowing  very  low,  saying: 
"  There  goes  the  prince  of  merchants  of  the 
whole  world."  Now  all  trains  crossing  all  con- 
tinents are  headed  Marshall  Field-ward;  all 
ships  sailing  all  seas  are  bound  Marshall  Field- 
ward;  The  Kingdom  Within,  THE  KINGDOM 
WITHIN. 

Some  years  ago  the  pastor  of  a  large  city 
church  had  as  organist  a  famous  German  musi- 
cian ;  and  when,  on  occasion  the  pastor  was  not 
at  his  best,  as  a  climax  to  the  service  he  would 
beckon  to  the  organist  to  take  his  place  at  the 
organ  and  furnish  that  climax.  It  was  after 
the  death  of  the  universally  loved  President  Mc- 
Kinley,  who  loved  so  much  the  hymn,  "  Lead, 
Kindly  Light  " —  the  hymn  being  made  dearer 
to  all  our  hearts  by  the  singing  of  it  at 
the  time  of  the  funeral  of  the  martyred  presi- 
dent, when  the  pastor  at  the  close  of  his  dis- 
course beckoned  to  the  organist,  and,  obeying, 


74.  THE  LARGER  VISION 

be  began  improvising  on  the  hymn  alluded  to. 
Softly  the  music  came  at  first,  stealing  into  all 
hearts  and  filling  them  with  richest  melody ; 
and  then  the  old  musician  began  pulling  out  all 
the  stops,  turned  on  all  the  manuals  of  the 
great  organ,  and  a  great  outburst  of  music,  re- 
sembling the  "  circling  of  pyramidal  crowns,  the 
collision  of  crashing  worlds,"  issued  forth,  and 
the  large  concourse  of  people  sat  spellbound. 

When  the  music  died  away,  even  as  the 
"  dying  away  of  the  tempest,"  the  pastor  rushed 
across  the  platform,  and  encircling  the  old 
organist  in  his  arms,  gave  utterance  to  the 
words  leaping  from  all  hearts :  "  Where  did 
you  get  it?  " 

The  great  musician,  every  ounce  of  physical 
energy  exhausted,  sank  down  into  a  chair,  and 
sat  as  in  a  trance  for  a  moment;  then,  lifting 
his  head,  he  murmured,  "  I  thought  I  was  in 
heaven." 

And  the  pastor  exclaimed,  "  You  were  in 
heaven,  and  we  were  all  in  heaven  —  but  where 
did  you  get  it?  " 

And  the  musician  rose  to  his  feet  and  modestly, 
said,  as  he  looked  into  the  sea  of  faces  before 
him :  "  I  will  try  to  answer  the  question  of 
your  pastor :  forty  years  ago  I  had  a  dream  — 
through  the  years  I  have  builded  my  life  into 
the  fulfillment  of  this  dream  —  and  to-night  it 


THE  REGAL  SPIRIT  75 

was    fulfilled."     The    Kingdom    Within  —  THE 

KINGDOM   WITHIN. 

Greater  still  have  been  the  triumphs  in  the 
spiritual  realm  as  lives,  dominated  by  the  regal 
spirit,  possessed  of  the  kingdom  within,  have 
gone  forth  to  give  to  the  world  the  impact  of 
consecrated  lives. 

In  the  days  of  spiritual  apostasy  in  the 
Church  of  England,  John  Wesley,  possessing 
the  kingdom  within,  cried  out :  "  The  world  is 
my  parish,"  and  Methodism,  that  regnant  force 
which  was  destined  to  give  to  the  world  a  heaven- 
ward tendency,  was  born. 

Dominated  by  this  selfsame  regal  spirit,  pos- 
sessed of  the  kingdom  within,  John  Knox  cried 
out :  "  Give  me  Scotland  or  I  die,"  and  God 
gave  him  Scotland. 

Obsessed  by  the  regal  spirit  of  Him  concern- 
ing whom  it  had  been  prophesied,  "  He  shall  not 
fail  nor  be  discouraged  till  He  have  set  judg- 
ment in  the  earth,  and  the  isles  shall  wait  for 
His  law,"  good  angels  of  light,  clad  in  the 
robes  of  our  humanity,  have  been  found  wend- 
ing their  way  down  into  the  heart  of  Africa, 
over  into  the  jungles  of  India,  and  far  out  on  the 
isles  of  the  sea ;  in  arms  of  love  and  mercy  bear- 
ing the  inhabitants  back  from  a  night-time  of 
ignorance  and  superstition,  to  the  "  wayside 
inn  "  of  heaven  and  eternal  life. 


76  THE  LARGER  VISION 

II.    THE  CHARACTER  OF  THE  REGAL  SPIRIT 

An  analysis  of  the  regal  spirit  is  tantamount 
to  an  analysis  of  the  character  of  the  King.  It 
is  because  of  no  taint,  in  word,  thought,  or  deed 
of  the  Nazarene  that  the  shadow  of  the  cross 
has  stretched  across  the  centuries.  Standing 
gazing  upon  this  life  of  purity,  friend  and  foe 
alike,  with  uncovered  head,  has  exclaimed :  "  I 
find  no  fault  in  Him." 

What  is  it  that  makes  the  flowers  so  beauti- 
ful? It  is  the  utter  absence  of  the  taint  of  im- 
purity. 

What  is  it  that  warrants  the  high  price  paid 
for  the  choicest  hardwoods  with  which  we  dec- 
orate our  homes  ?  It  is  freedom  from  "  wind 
shakes  "  and  taint  of  decay  —  impurity. 

Why  is  it  that  fingers  of  steel  grip  either 
shore  of  East  River,  forming  the  famous  Brook- 
lyn Bridge,  across  which  enormous  traffic  is 
carried  on  through  the  years  ?  It  is  the  absence 
of  corroding  rust  —  impurity  of  metal. 

Why  does  the  statesman,  capable  of  wrestling 
with  the  weighty  problems  of  state  and  nation, 
become  stripped  of  the  ermine  of  honor,  position, 
and  stamped  with  the  seal  of  popular  disap- 
proval? It  is  because  of  the  taint  of  avarice, 
greed,  graft  —  impurity  of  life. 

Why  that  tardy  recognition  of  the  gifts  of 


THE  REGAL  SPIRIT  77 

the  brilliant  intellect  of  a  Poe?  He  himself 
has  answered  unwittingly  in  the  words: 
"  Quoth  the  raven  nevermore."  It  is  because 
his  intellect  was  beclouded  by  the  taint  of  the 
intoxicating  bowl. 

The  world  has  with  one  accord  decreed  that 
the  purest  gem  of  earth  is  that  of  a  pure  woman- 
hood. The  basest  of  all  men  is  he  who  places  a 
low  estimate  upon  the  opposite  sex,  whilst  no 
greater  meed  of  praise  can  be  given  to  any  man 
than  the  simple  statement  that  above  everything 
else  of  an  earthly  character  he  loves  and  re- 
spects his  wife  and  mother. 

"  God   sought  to   give  the   sweetest  thing  in  his 

almighty  power 
To  earth;  and  deeply  pondering  what  it  should 

be  — 
One  hour,  in  fondest  joy  and  love  of  heart, 

Outweighing  every  other, 
He  moved  the  gates  of  heaven  ajar, 
And  gave  to  earth  —  a  mother." 

But  whilst  mother-love,  as  a  scepter  of 
supremacy,  holds  sway  over  the  lives  of  strong 
men  through  the  years,  it  is  only  because  that 
love  is  struck  through  and  through,  even  as  the 
costliest  gem,  with  purity.  Be  pure  —  for 

"  Not  in  the  clamor  of  the  crowded  street, 
Not  in  the  shout  and  plaudit  of  the  throng, 
But  in  ourselves  are  victory  and  defeat." 


78  THE  LARGER  VISION 

Unselfishness.  Another  and  dominating  char- 
acteristic of  the  regal  spirit  is  that  of  unselfish- 
ness. Ponder  the  lives  of  the  really  great  char- 
acters of  earth,  and  note  how  only  the  influence 
of  those  in  which  unselfishness  has  been  the 
determining  factor  abides. 

Perhaps  one  of  the  most  spectacular  char- 
acters in  the  military  world  was  Napoleon. 
With  a  personality  which  amounted  to  mag- 
netic power  he  bound  men  to  him,  whilst  with 
an  iron  will  all  heretofore  impregnable  Alpine 
summits  vanished,  like  mists  of  vapor  in  the 
presence  of  the  noonday's  sun. 

Analyze  the  life  of  this  peerless  leader,  and 
you  will  discover  that  the  dream  of  his  life  was 
to  make  France  supreme  among  the  nations  of 
the  earth,  and  to  place  the  scepter  of  suprem- 
acy among  the  nations  of  the  earth  in  the  hands 
of  his  immediate  family.  In  a  word,  the  ulti- 
mate and  ignominious  failure  of  Napoleon,  dy- 
ing on  St.  Helena's  rocky  shore  without  a  friend 
to  let  fall  a  tear  of  sorrow  on  his  grave,  may  be 
traced  to  the  self-centered  spirit  dominating 
his  life. 

Place  over  against  this  life  that  of  the  Naza- 
rene,  the  keynote  of  whose  life  was :  "  I  came 
not  to  be  ministered  unto,  but  to  minister ;  " 
and  you  have  the  secret  to  the  triumph  enabling 
him  to  "  stamp  his  name  upon  the  brow  of  the 


THE  REGAL  SPIRIT  79 

hurrying  centuries,  and  to  baptize  the  nations 
of  the  earth  with  his  birth." 

Some  few  years  since  a  number  of  prominent 
railway  officials  were  gathered  at  Boone,  Iowa, 
to  pay  a  tribute  of  honor  to  a  brave  engineer. 

On  a  certain  memorable  night  this  engineer 
took  his  place  on  his  engine  to  make  a  record 
run,  his  train  being  the  fastest  on  the  great 
Northwestern  System.  During  the  run  the 
engineer  noted  the  fact  that  he  had  lost  a  few 
minutes,  which  he  expected  to  make  up  at  a 
certain  point  where  there  was  a  down  grade. 
When  he  reached  this  point  it  was  noticed  that 
he  was  making  eighty  miles  an  hour,  when  sud- 
denly there  was  an  explosion,  and  engineer  and 
fireman  were  hurled  from  their  places  by  blind- 
ing steam  and  smoke,  the  engine  becoming  trans- 
formed into  an  inferno  in  which  no  man  could 
remain  and  live. 

When  the  engineer  resumed  consciousness  he 
staggered  to  his  feet,  wondering  how  long  he 
had  lain  there,  and  how  near  to  danger  they 
were,  for  the  train  was  thundering  along  at  a 
frightful  pace,  with  no  guiding  hand  on  the 
throttle. 

He  made  a  futile  attempt  to  regain  the  en- 
gine, but  was  driven  back  by  scalding  steam; 
then  bravely  he  climbed  over  the  coal  bunker, 
and  feeling  his  way  along,  at  length  arrived  at 


80  THE  LARGER  VISION 

the  express  car,  where  he  knocked  on  the  door 
for  admission,  realizing  that  even  now  he  was 
courting  death,  the  messenger  mistaking  him 
for  a  train  robber.  At  length,  however,  after 
what  seemed  to  him  to  be  an  eternity  of  waiting, 
the  door  was  thrown  open,  and  he  was  looking 
into  the  barrels  of  two  revolvers.  In  a  moment 
the  messenger  recognize'd  who  it  was,  and  the 
engineer  had  just  time  to  stagger  forward  to 
the  center  of  the  car,  pull  the  emergency  brake 

—  and  as  the  train  slowed  down,  fell  in  a  swoon 
on  his  face,  and  the  passengers  were  saved. 

That  was  why  those  officials  stood  that  day 
at  his  bedside,  presenting  to  him  the  finest  gold 
watch  that  money  could  buy,  inscribed  on  the 
inside  of  one  of  the  cases  of  which  were  the 
words:  "To  L.  H.  Shull  for  unselfish  fidelity 
to  duty,  Jan.  5th,  1907." 

The  unselfish  yielding  up  of  ourselves  to 
duty  —  this  is  the  acid  test  of  the  regal  spirit 

—  a  reflection  of  the  spirit  of  the  Christ. 


SPIRITUAL  POISE 


"  If  Shakespeare  were  to  come  into  this  room,  we 
would  all  rise  up  to  meet  him ;  but  if  Christ  were  to 
come  into  it,  we  should  all  fall  upon  our  knees." 

—  CHARLES  LAMB. 

"  Jesus  was  so  firmly  poised  that  under  the  pres- 
sure of  the  most  venomous  vituperation  that  has 
ever  been  hurled  against  a  man  he  stood  erect,  un- 
moved and  unmovable  —  his  poise  was  divine." 

—  JEFFERSON. 

"  Christ  being  the  holiest  among  the  mighty, 
and  the  mightiest  among  the  holy,  lifted  with  his 
pierced  hand  empires  off  their  hinges,  turned  the 
stream  of  centuries  out  of  its  channel,  and  still 
governs  the  ages." 

—  JEAN  PAUL  RICHTER. 

"  I  find  no  fault  in  him  at  all." 

—  PILATE. 


VI 
SPIRITUAL  POISE 

Perhaps  one  of  the  most  skillful  acrobatic 
performances  of  the  persent  day  is  that  known 
as  "  tight  rope  Walking."  For  the  successful 
achievement  of  this  feat  the  acrobat  must  main- 
tain a  perfect  physical  poise,  bringing  every 
muscle  of  the  body  under  perfect  control. 

Of  greater  significance  than  appears  on  the 
surface  is  this  achievement;  herein  is  embodied 
a  principle,  whose  application  in  human  ex- 
perience makes  for  the  largest  success. 

Note  the  application  of  this  principle  in  the 
social  world.  Returning  from  a  social  func- 
tion, you  have  said :  "  What  a  charming 
woman  is  Mrs.  So  and  So ;  never  ill  at  ease.  She 
has  the  happy  faculty  of  making  all  about  her 
feel  comfortable  —  in  a  word,  her  presence  is 
a  sufficient  guarantee  of  an  atmosphere  con- 
genial in  character."  And  then  perhaps,  at 
the  very  next  meeting  of  a  similar  character, 
you  were  disappointed  beyond  expression,  caus- 
ing you  to  murmur :  "  I  think  she  is  one  of  the 

most  frigid  creatures  I  have  ever  met." 

83 


84  THE  LARGER  VISION 

What  is  the  matter?  Lack  of  poise,  that  is 
all. 

Note  also  the  application  of  this  principle  in 
the  industrial  world. 

You  have  known  men  who  were  possessed  of 
an  abundance  of  energy,  a  perfect  enthusiasm 
in  their  work,  men  of  brain  power,  correct  busi- 
ness methods,  and,  withal,  a  goodly  amount  of 
tact  in  dealing  with  their  fellows.  Some  days 
you  have  found  them  to  be  a  perfect  bundle  of 
good  cheer  —  dame  fortune  has  smiled  benignly 
upon  them,  and  everything  has  come  their  way. 
In  response  to  an  interrogation  as  to  how  they 
were  getting  on,  with  beaming  countenances 
they  have  replied :  "  Oh,  things  are  going 
swimmingly."  And  then,  perchance  the  next 
time  you  meet  them,  you  note  an  entire  change 
of  demeanor;  stamped  with  the  telltale  lines  of 
disappointment,  reverse  of  fortune,  etc.,  are 
their  faces ;  they  are  up  today  and  down  to- 
morrow. 

What  is  the  matter?  Lack  of  poise,  that  is 
all. 

Who  has  not  noted  the  effects  of  an  absence 
of  poise  in  the  domestic  world?  Passing  into 
the  home  of  an  acquaintance,  you  have  become 
impressed  by  the  atmosphere  of  good  cheer: 
happiness  and  contentment,  like  twin  sisters, 
sit  jointly  on  the  throne ;  the  children  are  well 


SPIRITUAL  POISE  85 

demeaned;  the  servants  are  all  that  could  be 
desired;  and  you  have  gone  away  saying: 
"What  an  ideal  home." 

But  on  the  occasion  of  your  next  visit  you 
have  been  startled  by  an  atmosphere  resembling 
chaos;  the  children  are  cross  and  peevish;  the 
servants  bang  the  doors  and  frown,  as  they  pass 
from  room  to  room ;  the  mistress  of  the  home  is 
ill  at  ease ;  and  you  are  sure  that  the  twin  sisters 
of  discontent  and  unhappiness  have  usurped  the 
throne. 

What  is  the  matter?  Lack  of  poise,  that  is 
all. 

This  selfsame  principle  applies  in  the  spirit- 
ual realm.  What  pastor  has  not  had  an  ex- 
perience like  this?  Meeting  a  parishioner,  he 
has  been  delighted  to  find  him  possessed  of  a 
spirit  of  exhilaration,  a  perfect  spiritual  en- 
thusiasm, indicating  that  he  is  on  the  mountain- 
top  ;  and  then,  perhaps,  at  the  next  meeting, 
with  saddened  spirit,  he  has  noted  the  fact  that 
a  complete  change  has  come  over  the  man,  that 
no  longer  is  he  dominated  by  the  spirit  of 
optimism,  rather  has  he  become  transformed 
into  "  a  prophet  of  despondency  and  com- 
plaint." 

What  is  the  matter?  Lack  of  poise,  that  is 
all. 

The  absence  of  poise  means  the  reversal  of  the 


86  THE  LARGER  VISION 

arithmetic  of  life;  an  addition  of  unrest;  a 
subtraction  of  peace  of  mind,  joy  of  heart  and 
contentment  of  life ;  a  multiplication  of  needless 
worry;  and  a  division  of  that  perfect  equi- 
librium which  men  must  possess  in  order  to  be  at 
their  best. 

It  was  the  day  that  you  were  not  at  your  best 
that  you  dropped  the  unkind  word,  which  robbed 
the  dear  ones  at  home  of  a  whole  day  of 
happiness,  and  haunted  you,  through  the  long 
business  hours,  like  a  thief  in  the  night.  It 
was  the  day  you  were  not  at  your  best  that  you 
failed  to  make  the  most  of  a  golden  opportun- 
ity, causing  you  to  charge  up  a  considerable 
item  to  profit  and  loss. 

To  be  at  your  best  means  to  possess  the  touch 
of  power  responsible  for  all  that  is  worth  while 
in  every  sphere  in  life.  Given  the  touch  of 
power,  and  the  poet  shall  write  immortal 
dramas,  the  musician  shall  compose  a  great  ora- 
torio, the  artist  shall  fling  upon  the  canvas  a 
masterpiece,  the  statesman  shall  evolve  a  solu- 
tion to  the  vexed  problem  of  state,  the  com- 
manding general  shall  triumph  at  Appomattox 
and  Waterloo,  and  the  commonplace  experi- 
ence shall  grow  into  the  extraordinary. 


SPIRITUAL  POISE  87 

I.    THE  WORLD'S  GREATEST  DEFORMITY 

If  you  were  to  ask  the  wise  man,  "  What  is 
the  world's  greatest  deformity?  "  he  would  an- 
swer, "  An  absence  of  perfect  poise." 

In  the  physical  realm,  metaphorically  speak- 
ing, it  is  "  the  bruised  reed  and  the  smoking 
flax ;  "  literally  speaking,  it  is  an  absence  of 
the  use  of  one  or  more  of  our  physical  faculties. 
It  is  the  rattle  of  the  crutch  of  the  cripple ; 
the  blind  man  feeling  his  way  through  life,  aided 
by  a  cane;  the  hunchback  who  cannot  hide  his 
deformity. 

In  the  intellectual  world  it  is  "  the  simple 
minded  man,"  or  the  poor  fellow  from  whose 
brow  reason  has  fled  the  throne. 

Some  years  ago  the  doorbell  of  a  well-known 
divine  rang  one  morning;  answering  it  himself, 
he  looked  into  the  face  of  an  entire  stranger, 
whose  sorrow  smitten  face  indicated  all  to 
plainly  that  he  was  in  need  of  sympathy. 

The  stranger  was  bidden  to  enter,  and  when 
he  was  seated,  said :  "  I  do  not  know  your 
name,  but  I  have  been  told  that  you  are  an 
ambassador  of  Christ,  and  I  profess  to  be  a 
follower  of  Him."  And  then,  while  tears 
trickled  down  his  cheeks,  the  man  continued,  "  I 
have  just  placed  my  sister  in  the  hospital  for 
the  insane  of  your  city  —  and  —  and  " —  the 


88  THE  LARGER  VISION 

sentence  remained  unfinished,  whilst  the  man 
buried  his  face  in  his  hands  and  sobbed  as  if 
his  heart  would  break,  and  the  clergyman 
silently  wept  with  him,  knowing  that  every  time 
the  door  of  that  building  opened  to  admit  a  new 
patient  a  fresh  tragedy  was  enacted. 

By-and-by  the  man  regained  his  composure, 
and  turning  to  the  man  of  God  said :  "  I 
thought  maybe  sometimes  you  would  be  kind 
enough  to  visit  her,"  and  receiving  assurance 
that  he  would  be  glad  to  do  so,  the  man  went 
away  comforted. 

Is  there  any  greater  deformity  known  to  our 
humanity  than  that  of  an  absence  of  poise  such 
as  I  have  indicated  in  the  intellectual  world? 
There  is. 

What  is  that  deformity?  It  is  the  absence 
of  poise  in  the  spiritual  realm. 

Perhaps  the  most  forcible  illustration  to  be 
found  anywhere  touching  the  absence  of  spirit- 
ual poise,  or  spiritual  deformity,  is  that  con- 
tained in  the  two-fold  word  picture  painted  by 
the  apostle  Paul,  in  which  he  holds  up  the  carnal 
nature,  devoid  of  all  the  graces  of  the  spirit, 
and  then  throws  over  against  this  the  picture  of 
the  renewed  spirit,  in  whose  life  are  found  the 
fruits  of  the  spirit. 

It  is  as  if  Paul  had  gathered  together  the 
blackness  of  a  thousand  night-times  to  be  used 


SPIRITUAL  POISE  89 

as  a  background,  whilst  with  colorings  indic- 
ative of  tear-stained  faces,  prematurely  whited 
locks,  deeply  ploughed  furrows  of  care,  and 
bleeding,  broken  hearts,  he  has  painted  this 
picture:  "adultery,  fornication,  uncleanness, 
lasciviousness,  idolatry,  witchcraft,  hatred,  em- 
ulation, wrath,  strife,  seditions,  envyings,  mur- 
derers, drunkenness  and  revelings." 

And  gazing  upon  this  picture,  the  soul  starts 
back  in  terror,  crying  out :  "  Paul,  why  did 
you  paint  this  picture  ?  " 

And  Paul  answers,  "  That  I  might  represent 
in  toto  spiritual  deformity  —  an  absence  of 
spiritual  poise." 

And  the  soul  cries  out : "  "  Paul,  give  us  the 
other  side  of  the  picture.  Hurry  up,  Paul;  if 
you  do  not  do  so,  I  will  go  mad  with  an  agony 
of  spirit." 

And  the  great  apostle  hastens  to  throw  upon 
the  canvas  of  inspiration  the  other  side  of  the 
picture.  For  a  background,  he  utilizes  the  light 
and  glory  of  a  thousand  sunrises,  whilst  in  this 
setting  he  paints,  in  colorings  of  entangled  rain- 
bows and  pinioned  sunsets,  this  picture :  "  love, 
joy,  peace,  longsuffering,  gentleness,  meekness, 
goodness,  faith  and  temperance." 

And  the  soul,  overwhelmed  at  the  sight,  ex- 
claims, "  Paul,  why  did  you  paint  this  pic- 
ture?" 


90  THE  LARGER  VISION 

And  Paul  answers,  "  That  I  might  typify  the 
utter  absence  of  spiritual  deformity  —  perfect 
spiritual  poise." 

There  are  moments  in  life  when  time  ceases 
to  be  a  factor  —  when  the  soul,  standing  on 
some  inspiration  point,  enthralled,  as  he  feasts 
his  eyes  on  a  glorious  panorama  or  mighty  can- 
yon, becomes  intoxicated  on  the  wine  of  nature's 
beauty ;  it  is  even  so  as  we  gaze  upon  this  two- 
fold picture  painted  by  the  apostle,  the  glory 
of  the  latter  being  enhanced  as  we  turn  away 
from  the  former,  reminding  us  of  the  experience 
of  the  unregenerate  soul  who  has  passed  from 
nature's  darkness  out  into  the  marvelous  light 
and  liberty  of  the  new  birth. 

And  yet  we  should  not  lose  sight  of  the  fact 
that  the  sheen  of  the  sun  can  never  equal  the 
sun  itself  —  let  us  look  at  the  sun. 

II.    THE  POISE  OF  CHRIST 

By  the  poise  of  Christ  I  mean  the  embodiment 
of  all  those  graces  of  the  spirit,  all  those  moral 
excellencies,  which  make  for  perfect  manhood, 
since  Christ  was  the  one  perfect  Man  who  ever 
trod  this  earth. 

The  world  has  been  enriched  and  blessed  by 
men  possessed  of  high  ideals,  men,  who  perforce 
of  weakness  of  the  flesh  have  never  attained  unto 


SPIRITUAL  POISE  91 

their  ideal.  Jesus  was  in  Himself,  is  in  Him- 
self, the  world's  ideal,  by  reason  of  the  fact  that 
He  is  the  embodiment  of  all  those  things  which 
make  for  perfection.  Gazing  upon  His  life, 
pondering  the  utterances  falling  from  His  lips, 
the  mighty  works  performed  by  Him,  friends 
and  foes  alike  unite  in  declaring :  "  I  find  no 
fault  in  him." 

Men  have  sought  to  develop,  have  developed 
in  a  large  degree,  the  spirit  of  nobility,  as  a 
result  of  which  their  fellows,  standing  at  the 
open  grave,  have  paid  them  this  high  compli- 
ment :  "  These  men  made  the  world  better  by 
living  in  it."  Jesus  was  in  Himself  the  source 
and  fountain  head  of  nobility;  no  finger  has 
ever  been  laid  upon  an  ignoble  thought,  word  or 
deed  connected  with  His  life. 

Beautiful  in  character  is  the  spirit  of  philan- 
thropy dominating  the  lives  of  men,  responsible 
for  the  various  eleemosynary  institutions,  the 
haven  of  the  impotent  and  poor  of  the  earth ; 
but  every  asylum  for  the  poor  and  needy  points 
backward  to  the  fountain-head  of  all  philan- 
thropy, to  Him  who  said :  "  The  poor  ye  have 
always  with  you."  Like  a  venerable  gulf 
stream,  sympathy,  the  outgoing  of  human 
hearts  to  those  in  need,  is  found  flowing  adown 
the  vales  of  human  experience,  giving  rise  to 


92  THE  LARGER  VISION 

the  old  adage :  "  One  touch  of  nature  makes 
the  whole  world  kin."  And  yet  we  know  that 
there  is  such  a  thing  as  misplaced  sympathy. 

Jesus  was  in  Himself  the  source  of  this  gulf 
stream  of  sympathy ;  as  the  sympathizer  and 
friend  of  our  humanity,  His  heart  is  ever  found 
beating  in  sympathetic  throb  with  every  real 
heartache  and  heartbreak.  Possessed  of  per- 
fect wisdom  and  an  unerring  spirit  of  discrimi- 
nation, no  deception  may  be  successfully  prac- 
ticed upon  Him. 

For  forty  centuries  the  Jews  had  been  the 
conservators  of  the  faith ;  but  owing  to  nar- 
rowness of  vision  and  a  self-centered  tempera- 
ment, their  faith  never  extended  beyond  the 
horizon  of  their  own  nation. 

Jesus  came  to  exemplify  a  faith  that  "  thinks 
in  continents,"  embracing  all  mankind.  One 
of  the  hardest  tasks  assumed  by  Him  in  the 
development  of  His  disciples  was  that  of  break- 
ing down  the  prejudice  and  bias  of  four  thou- 
sand years'  standing,  broadening  their  spiritual 
horizon ;  hence  the  vision  given  to  Peter  on  the 
housetop  of  Simon  the  tanner,  in  which  the  four 
corners  of  the  sheet  let  down  from  heaven  were 
made  to  typify  the  four  corners  of  the  earth. 
Hence  also  the  vision  given  to  Paul,  in  which 
the  hand  stretched  out  across  the  sea  was  made 
to  symbolize  the  outstretched  hand  of  the 


SPIRITUAL  POISE  93 

heathen  world,  crying:  "  Come  over  and  help 
us." 

Growing  out  of  this  self-centered  spirit  in  the 
secular  world  was  found  the  hated  spirit  of 
caste.  Jesus  came  to  exemplify  the  spirit  of  a 
true  democracy,  to  propagate  the  twofold  doc- 
trine of  "  the  Fatherhood  of  God  and  the 
brotherhood  of  man."  Unlike  other  teachers 
who  preceded  Him  and  who  have  succeeded  Him, 
the  doctrines  which  Jesus  enunciated  were  never 
circumscribed  by  local  conditions;  His  constit- 
uency embraced  all  nations  and  peoples. 

Seeking  to  compass  His  overthrow  by  en- 
tangling Him  in  His  words,  the  Pharisees,  nar- 
row and  bigoted  in  temperament,  came  asking 
this  question :  "  Is  it  lawful  to  give  tribute  to 
Caesar,  or  not?  " 

Note  the  cunning  of  the  wording  of  this 
question.  If  He  answered,  "  Yes,"  then  the 
Jews,  vassals  of  Rome  and  smarting  under  the 
humiliation  of  imposed  tribute,  would  have 
turned  against  Him ;  if  He  answered,  "  No," 
then  all  the  hounds  of  Rome  had  "  been  hot 
upon  His  trail." 

See  then  the  perfect  poise  of  this  World 
Teacher  as  He  called  for  a  penny  and,  holding 
it  in  His  hand,  inquired :  "  Whose  is  this  image 
and  superscription  ?  "  They  answered,  "  Caes- 
ar's." Jesus  answered :  "  Render  unto  Caesar 


94  THE  LARGER  VISION 

the  things  that  are  Caesar's,  and  unto  God  the 
things  that  are  God's."  And  the  Pharisees 
were  forever  silenced. 

Then  came  the  scribes,  propounding  this 
question :  "  Master,  which  is  the  first  and  great 
commandment?"  Jesus  answered:  "Thou 
shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart, 
with  all  thy  soul,  with  all  thy  mind  and  with 
all  thy  strength,  and  thy  neighbor  as  thyself." 
Quick  as  a  flash  came  the  retort :  "  Who  is  my 
neighbor? "  And  on  the  impulse  of  the  mo- 
ment this  perfectly  poised  Teacher  formulated 
the  parable  of  the  "  Good  Samaritan,"  in  which 
He  administered  a  stinging  rebuke  to  the  nation 
which  for  forty  centuries  had  been  passing  by 
the  heathen  world,  as  they  were  made  to  look 
upon  the  "  Good  Samaritan  "  unmindful  of  the 
fact  that  the  man  in  need  was  his  hated  rival, 
and  mindful  only  of  the  fact  that  a  man  in 
need  appealed  to  him  for  help.  And  the  scribes 
were  effectually  silenced. 

Perhaps  the  sublimest  utterance  falling  from 
the  lips  of  this  perfectly  poised  Teacher  is  this: 
"  I  came  not  to  be  ministered  unto,  but  to  min- 
ister." 

After  fasting  in  the  wilderness  for  a  period 
of  forty  days,  the  tempter,  Satan,  approached 
Him,  saying :  "  If  thou  be  the  Son  of  God, 
command  that  these  stones  be  made  bread." 


SPIRITUAL  POISE  95 

Jesus  answered :  "  It  is  written,  man  shall  not 
live  by  bread  alone,  but  by  every  word  which 
proceedeth  out  of  the  mouth  of  God  " ;  empha- 
sizing the  fact  that  heavenly  manna  has  ever 
been  provided  for  those  who  are  faithful  to  the 
trust  committed  to  them,  and  that  enduement  of 
power  never  spells  license  to  use  this  power  for, 
selfish  purposes. 

How  the  pulse  beat  is  silenced  and  the  heart 
made  to  stand  still  as  we  see  the  Christ, 
suspended  on  the  cross,  paying  the  ultimate 
penalty  of  human  sin ;  as  we  behold  chief  priests, 
scribes  and  Pharisees,  joined  by  friends  of  hell, 
falling  before  Him  in  mock  derision,  saying: 
"  He  saved  others,  Himself  He  canot  save "  ; 
causing  another  to  exclaim:  "Eternal  justice, 
where  were  thy  thunderbolts ;  angels  of  God, 
where  were  ye  encamped,  or  how  restrained?  " 

And  Jesus,  lifting  His  sorrow-smitten  face, 
looked  up  and  replied :  "  Father,  forgive  them, 
for  they  know  not  what  they  do." 

In  Boardman's  "  Problem  of  Jesus  "  may  be 
found  this  comprehensive  summary  of  the  excel- 
lencies embodied  in  the  poise  of  Jesus : 

"  He  was  faultless,  without  dullness ;  patriotic, 
without  partisanship;  courteous,  without  hollow- 
ness;  dignified,  without  stiffness;  calm,  without 
stolidity;  frank,  without  effusiveness;  chivalrous, 
without  rashness;  aggressive,  without  pugnacity; 


96  THE  LARGER  VISION 

conciliatory,  without  sycophancy;  prudent,  with- 
out timeserving;  modest,  without  self-deprecia- 
tion; gracious,  without  condescension;  just,  with- 
out severity;  lenient,  without  laxity;  patient,  with- 
out stoicism;  self-conscious,  without  self-conceit; 
heroic,  without  coarseness;  sympathetic,  without 
connivance;  stern,  without  censoriousness ;  indig- 
nant, without  bitterness;  forgiving,  without  feeble- 
ness; trustful,  without  improvidence;  diversified, 
without  contrariety  —  in  a  word  perfect,  without 
unnaturalness." 

With   such   a   Saviour,   the   world  may   well 
join  in  this  coronation  hymn: 

"  All  hail  the  power  of  Jesus'  name, 

Let  angels  prostrate  fall; 
Bring  forth  the  royal  diadem, 

And  crown  Him  Lord  of  all." 


THE  VICARIOUS  CONTRIBUTION 


tl 


A  man  was  born,  not  for  prosperity;  but  to 
suffer  for  the  benefit  of  others,  like  the  rock 
maple,  which  all  around  our  village  bleeds  for  the 
service  of  man." 

— EMERSON. 

"  The  florist  sacrifices  ninety-nine  buds,  in  order 
to  obtain  one  American  Beauty;  in  like  manner 
countless  lives  must  be  builded  into  a  full-fledged, 
redeemed  manhood." 

— L. 

"  Everything  cries  out  to  us  that  we  must  re- 
nounce. Thou  must  go  without.  That  is  the  ever- 
lasting song  which  every  hour,  all  our  life  through, 
hoarsely  sings  to  us:  die  and  come  to  life;  for  so 
long  as  this  is  not  accomplished  thou  art  but  a 
troubled  guest  upon  an  earth  of  gloom/' 

—  GOETHE. 

"Who  for  the  joy  that  was  set  before  Him  en- 
dured the  cross,  despising  the  shame,  and  is  set 
down  at  the  right  hand  of  the  throne  of  God." 

—  HEBREWS,  12:2. 


VII 
THE  VICARIOUS  CONTRIBUTION 

Stamped  upon  the  face  of  all  creation  is  the 
law  of  vicarious  contribution,  making  it  obli- 
gatory upon  every  phase  of  creative  genius, 
and,  reverently  speaking,  upon  the  Creator 
Himself,  bound  by  the  law  which  He  has  be- 
come responsible  for,  to  give,  give  largely,  give 
with  prodigal  hand,  even  to  the  limit  of  life  it- 
self, in  order  to  existence. 

One  of  the  good  old  hymns  of  the  church 
which  the  "  saints  "  were  wont  to  sing  with 
swing  of  conquest  is  more  than  suggestive  of 
the  vital  importance  of  an  observance  of  this 
law: 

"  There  is  a  fountain  filled  with  blood, 

Drawn  from  Immamiel's  veins; 
And  sinners  plunged  beneath  that  flood, 
Lose  all  their  guilty  stains." 

What  precious  memories  are  awakened  of  the 
days  of  auld  lang  syne  when,  with  sinners  bowed 
at  the  altars  of  prayer,  consecrated  souls,  with 

old-time  fervor  surging  up  through  heart  and 

99 


100  THE  LARGER  VISION 

brain,  sang  this  hymn,  until  the  heavens  bowed 
down  and  souls  were  born  of  God ! 

Is  it  true  that  in  these  later  days  we  are 
growing  away  from  the  "  old  paths  "  of  power, 
and  are  found  leaning  more  to  the  "  letter  " 
than  to  the  "  spirit  "  of  the  law? 

Is  it  true  that  the  sneer  of  a  well-known 
divine,  declaring  that  the  "  blood  theory "  is 
"  grewsome,  in  bad  taste  to  refined  souls,"  is 
having  effect  upon  pulpit  and  pew  of  to-day? 

Whether  this  be  so  or  not,  we  need  not  go 
far  afield  to  learn  that  the  law  of  vicarious  con- 
tribution, the  so-called  "  blood  theory,"  is  of 
universal  application,  carrying  with  it  the  pen- 
alty of  failure  to  exist  where  refusal  of  compli- 
ance is  registered. 

I.    THE  VICARIOUS  CONTRIBUTION  IN  THE 
PHYSICAL  REALM 

With  prodigality  of  contribution  the  flowers 
give  out  their  beauty  and  fragrance,  give  until 
there  is  no  more  to  give.  And  suppose  they 
were  to  withhold  their  offerings ;  with  tightly 
closed  petals  should  exclaim :  "  We  will  keep 
for  our  own  use  our  beauty  and  fragrance ; " 
then  would  they  become  blighted,  wither,  die, 
since  the  law  of  living  is  giving. 

With  similar  prodigality  the  sun  gives  out 
light  and  heat;  across  vast  abysses  of  space  the 


THE  VICARIOUS  CONTBlfctJlJON   :  lM 

center  of  the  solar  universe,  the  sun,  pours  out 
contributions  of  light  and  heat,  supplying  not 
alone  our  world,  but  other  worlds  as  well. 

But  suppose  the  sun  were  to  refuse  to  give, 
were  to  close  up  his  bowels  of  compassion,  say- 
ing, "  I  will  retain  for  my  own  use  my  light  and 
heat,"  what  then?  "Then,"  you  say,  "our 
world  would  become  barren,  dormant ;  every 
living,  creeping,  walking,  flying,  swimming  ani- 
mal of  earth  and  sea  and  sky,  including  all 
forms  of  vegetable  creation,  would  be  consigned 
to  a  common  charnel  house  of  death." 

Well,  that  is  true,  but  it  is  not  all  the  truth ; 
for  if  the  sun  were  to  refuse  to  give  out  light 
and  heat,  were  to  hug  to  his  bosom  all  his  light 
and  heat,  the  sun  would  explode,  burn  up,  per- 
force, of  his  refusal  to  give.  Seated  by  the 
open  grate  on  cold  winter  evenings',  we  are 
wont  to  dream  after  the  fashion  of  Mr.  Haw- 
thorne, finding  ourselves  carried  back  in  thought 
to  the  time  when  primeval  forests  covered  all  the 
land,  whose  foliage  through  the  long  summer 
days  drank  in  rays  of  sunlight,  and  in  the 
autumnal  period  took  on  the  colorings  of  crim- 
son and  gold,  symbolical  of  the  red  blood  of 
sacrifice,  whilst,  kissed  by  the  autumn  breeze, 
these  leaves  are  seen  falling  in  banks  of  golden 
foliage  to  the  earth  —  the  process  continuing 
for  who'  can  tell  how  many  ages? 


1W  t'HE  LARGER  VISION 

By-and-by,  when  the  acids  and  gases  have 
done  their  work,  down  beneath  the  earth's  sur- 
face are  found  great  beds  of  coal,  which  the 
miner  brings  forth,  and,  flinging  the  coal  into 
the  open  grate,  we  are  minded  of  the  fact  that 
the  heat  and  light  proceeding  from  the  same 
are  but  the  liberated  rays  of  sunlight. 

But  who  among  us  is  possessed  of  sufficient 
temerity  to  accuse  Hawthorne  of  promulgating 
"  a  grewsome  theory  "  ? 

Some  years  ago,  when  a  denizen  of  the  far 
west,  I  often  found  myself  traversing  the 
"  Paloose  and  Big  Bend  "  country,  Washington, 
where  one  becomes  minded  of  the  words  of  Gei- 
kie :  "  The  vales  are  the  beneficiaries  of  the 
mountains."  And  though  the  fields  of  waving, 
golden  grain  ready  for  the  garner  in  this  section 
of  country,  perhaps  one  of  the  most  fertile  in 
our  whole  domain,  present  a  picture  inspiring 
in  character,  more  inspiring  still  is  the  con- 
templation of  Geikie,  who,  in  speaking  of  an- 
other fertile  section  of  the  world,  tells  us  that 
"  the  vast  composts  of  the  mountains  are 
swelled  by  the  summer's  heat,  split  open  by  the 
winter's  frosts,  pulverized  and  swept  down  into 
the  vales  by  the  springtime  rains  and  melting 
snows  to  enrich  the  vales,"  the  mountains  liter- 
ally becoming  impovished  for  the  enrichment  of 
the  vales. 


THE  VICARIOUS  CONTRIBUTION      103 

But  who  has  heard  of  anybody  charg- 
ing Geikie  with  promulgating  "  a  grewsome 
theory  "  ? 

It  was  after  several  weeks'  drought  in  east- 
ern Tennessee,  during  which  the  leaves  of  trees 
had  become  brown  and  sear,  the  stalks  of  corn 
"  sun  fried,"  that  a  million  voices  of  nature 
were  heard  pleading  piteously  for  rain.  Then 
the  great  orb  of  light,  the  sun,  whispered  to  the 
ocean,  the  great  deep  smiled  assent,  and  with 
huge  golden  dippers  the  sun  lifted  the  waters 
of  the  sea  into  the  waiting  carriers,  the  clouds ; 
and  the  clouds,  scurrying  over  mountains,  hills 
and  vales,  deposited  their  precious  burden  upon 
the  parched  earth. 

And  now  —  didn't  you  hear  the  music  of 
these  selfsame  million  of  voices  of  nature,  trans- 
formed into  so  many  voices  of  praise,  sending 
up  a  Te  Deum  of  thanksgiving  to  the  Giver  of 
every  good  and  perfect  gift? 

Maybe  you  did  not  hear  the  music ;  there  are 
so  many  of  us  who,  "  having  eyes,  see  not,  and 
ears,  hear  not ; "  so  many  who  fail  to  get  the 
significance  of  the  words  of  the  poet: 

"  There  seems  a  voice  in  every  gale, 

A  tongue  in  every  flower, 
Which  tells,  O  Lord,  the  wondrous  tale 

Of  Thine  almighty  power." 

But  suppose  the  ocean  were  to  refuse  the  re- 


104*  THE  LARGER  VISION 

quest  of  the  sun  to  give  of  her  waters  to  re- 
freshen the  parched  earth,  should  say,  "  I  have 
need  of  all  my  waters;  it  is  mine  to  furnish  a 
highway  of  the  deep,  a  world  highway,  across 
which  may  tramp  great  steamers  carrying  on 
the  world's  traffic;  it  is  mine  to  furnish  great 
harbors  with  water,  where  steamers  may  lie  at 
anchor  and  numberless  row-boats  and  tugboats 
may  sag  in  my  waters ;  I  cannot  spare  water 
for  the  parched  earth  beyond  my  own  confines," 
—  what  then  ? 

Then  would  the  clouds  evaporate,  their  mis- 
sion at  an  end;  the  rivulets  and  brooks  would 
no  longer  laugh  on  their  way ;  the  rivers  would 
be  dried  up ;  the  great  harbors  would  become 
empty  — "  no  water  to  wander  along  the  un- 
dulating shore  lines,  filling  all  the  place  with 
the  green,  brackish  wonder  of  the  deep ;  "  aye, 
then,  the  source  of  supply  cut  off,  the  ocean 
itself  would  become  a  vast  pool  of  pestil- 
ence-breeding odors,  since  giving  is  the  law  of 
being. 

Bending  over  the  full-blown  and  blushing 
rose,  looking  through  Tyndall's  eyes,  we  may 
see  the  dewdrop  in  the  early  morn  reposing  in 
the  heart  of  the  rose,  in  which  "  is  sheathed 
enough  electric  power  to  charge  100,000  Leyden 
jars,  enough  to  blow  up  the  House  of  Parlia- 
ment." But  nobody,  to  my  knowledge,  has 


THE  VICARIOUS  CONTRIBUTION      105 

summoned  up  sufficient  courage  to  charge  Tyn- 
dall  with  promulgating  "  a  grewsome  theory." 
Looking  through  Faraday's  eyes,  we  are  re- 
minded that  in  order  to  obtain  "  the  coloring 
and  delicious  flavor  of  a  single  strawberry, 
enough  energy  of  the  sun  is  consumed  to  drive 
an  engine  from  London  to  Liverpool,  or  from 
Chicago  to  Detroit."  And  yet  I  feel  quite  sure 
Faraday  never  lost  any  sleep  over  the  cruel 
charge  that  he  was  guilty  of  promulgating  a 
theory  repulsive  to  the  refined  taste  of  his  fel- 
lows. 

II.    THE   VICARIOUS   CONTRIBUTON   IN   THE 
INTELLECTUAL  WORLD 

Standing  gazing  upon  a  library  of  well 
selected  books,  historical,  literary,  biographical, 
philosophical,  scientific,  etc.,  in  character,  have 
you  asked  the  question,  "  How  much  did  this 
library  cost?  " 

If  you  had  reference  to  the  cost  of  the  mater- 
ials, the  printing,  binding,  etc.,  your  question 
is  an  insignificant  one,  for  that  is  a  mere  bag- 
atelle, an  inconsiderable  item  of  expense.  But 
if  you  refer  to  what  it  cost  the  authors  of  these 
books,  pouring  out  brain  sweat  —  that  is  an- 
other matter. 

How  much  did  it  cost  the  author  of  Milton's 
"  Paradise  Lost,"  incarcerated  behind  walls  of 


106  THE  LARGER  VISION 

total  blindness,  to  produce  the  immortal  work 
which  bears  his  name? 

How  much  did  it  cost  Tennyson  to  write  "  In 
Memoriam  "  ?  For  answer  you  must  sit  with 
him,  through  long  vigils  of  loneliness  and  heart- 
break, listening  to  the  drip,  drip,  drip  of  human 
blood,  as  he  contemplates  the  "  loved  one " 
from  whose  brow  reason  had  fled  the  throne. 

How  much  did  it  cost  Emerson  to  write  the 
words :  "  The  times  are  the  masquerades  of  the 
eternities,  the  receptacle  in  which  the  past  leaves 
its  history,  the  quarries  out  of  which  the  present 
is  building  up  the  future  "  ? 

Did  you  think  this  was  a  mere  poetical  effu- 
sion flung  out  in  moments  of  "  mental  playful- 
ness "  ?  Not  so.  If  you  would  know  the  real 
cost  of  any  one  of  the  real  gems  of  poetic  truth, 
you  must  watch  the  author  burning  the  midnight 
oil,  casting  and  recasting  the  choice  phrase  a 
thousand  times,  until  the  gold  of  intellectual 
worth  is  produced  to  enrich  human  lives. 

See,  then,  this  "  intellectual  millionaire,"  who 
has  climbed  hand  over  hand  up  the  ladder  of  in- 
tellectual fame,  until,  having  reached  the  top- 
most rundle,  he  becomes  capable  of  formulating 
symbolisms  of  truth  whose  unfolding  shall  be- 
come the  delight  of  those  possessed  of  the  larger 
vision.  Aye,  see  Emerson,  possessed  of  the 
larger  vision  himself,  as  he  ponders  "  the  times 


THE  VICARIOUS  CONTRIBUTION      107 

—  the  masquerades  of  the  eternities  " —  liter- 
ally the  world  stage  on  which  every  man,  woman 
and  child  of  earth  performs  his  part;  see  him 
as,  with  enlarging  vision,  he  catches  sight  of 
the  toilers  of  the  past  come  trooping  up,  like 
so  many  school  children,  with  arms  laden  with 
flowers,  flinging  their  treasure-troves  at  our 
feet,  forming  a  receptacle  for  a  world  product; 
aye,  see  him  as,  with  mighty  sweep  of  vision,  he 
looks  out  into  the  future  and  beholds  the  sub- 
limer  structure,  fame,  honor,  character,  man- 
hood, womanhood,  the  sublime  achievements  of 
those  who  have  utilized  the  materials  at  hand  — 
"  the  quarry  out  of  which  the  present  is  build- 
ing up  the  future." 

How  much  did  it  cost  Lincoln  to  scribble  on 
the  back  of  an  envelope,  riding  along  on  the 
train  —  having  hurried  away  from  the  exacting 
duties  of  the  chief  magistrate  of  our  nation  in 
the  most  trying  hours  through  which  our  nation 
has  ever  passed  —  how  much  did  it  cost  him  to 
formulate  the  outline  of  that  greatest  patriotic 
oration  which  has  ever  been  delivered,  the  or- 
ation delivered  at  Gettysburg? 

If  you  would  know  all  the  cost  you  must  stand 
where  the  old  soldiers  of  our  united  republic 
recently  stood,  the  blue  and  the  gray,  in  the 
reunion  at  Gettysburg  the  past  year,  and  recall 
the  awful  struggle,  "  the  hell  of  shot  and  shell," 


108  THE  LARGER  VISION 

through  which  they  passed,  in  order  that  our 
Republic  might  remain  intact. 

The  renowned,  lamented  southern  orator  and 
author,  Henry  W.  Grady,  was  wont  to  say : 
"  If  I  wanted  my  boy  to  learn  the  meaning  of 
this  republic,  I  would  lead  him  to  the  foot  of 
Bunker  Hill  monument,  and  there,  seated  be- 
neath the  shadow  of  that  mighty  shaft,  I  would 
recite  to  him  the  story  of  the  men  who  came  up 
to  the  altar  of  a  nation's  sacrifice,  laying  thereon 
their  all  in  order  to  save  the  republic  itself." 

How  much  did  it  cost  to  write  the  book  of 
books?  Who  will  undertake  the  herculean  task 
of  estimating  the  cost  of  patriarchal  faith  and 
prophetic  vision,  the  cost  of  heroes  and  martyrs, 
poets  and  statesmen  —  characters  "  lofty  and 
lowly,  noble  and  ignoble  "  making  up  the  mater- 
ials woven  into  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures  — 
not  to  speak  of  God's  greatest  gift  to  men,  re- 
sponsible for  the  impoverishment  of  heaven  for 
the  enrichment  of  earth,  even  the  gift  of  His 
only  begotten  Son  of  New  Testament  narrative? 

Only  when  some  archangel  of  the  world  of 
light  shall  rise  up  in  yonder  world  of  light  to 
tell  of  the  cost  of  tears  grown  into  mighty 
rivers ;  of  groans  grown  into  sound  resembling 
that  of  thunders  crashing  along  the  mountains 
of  the  skies ;  of  the  tension  of  heartbreak  which 


THE  VICARIOUS  CONTRIBUTION      109 

on  Calvary's  summit  caused  this  world  to  shud- 
der— •  rocks  being  jostled  out  of  their  places," 
the  great  orb  of  light,  the  sun,  wheeling  his 
chariot  of  illumination  backward  from  the 
scene,  refusing  to  look  upon  the  sun  of  right- 
eousness from  whom  he  had  borrowed  his  rays 
of  light,  sinking  beneath  a  horizon  of  mingled 
darkness,  death  and  blood  whilst  the  bending 
sympathies  of  heaven  let  fall  a  tear  —  shall  we 
be  able  to  grip  this  stupendous  thought,  the 
cost  of  writing  of  God's  revelation  to  men. 

III.    THE  VICARIOUS  CONTRIBUTION  IN  THE 
SPIRITUAL  REALM 

We  have  already  indicated  that  the  Author 
of  the  law  of  vicarious  contribution  must  Him- 
self be  subject  to  the  application  of  that  law  in 
fulfillment  of  the  relation  which  He  sustains  to 
the  children  of  men.  Amazed  and  dazed,  we 
stand  gazing  upon  the  actual  application  in  His 
sacrificial  offering. 

Again  and  again  have  we  reverted  in  thought 
to  the  sacrifice  of  Abraham  who,  by  common  con- 
sent, has  outdistanced  all  his  fellows  in  offering 
up  Isaac,  his  only  son,  at  Mt.  Moriah.  Stag- 
gering under  the  very  burden  of  contemplation, 
we  have  followed  him  on  that  lonely  journey 
of  three  days  and  nights  —  days  and  nights  so 
long  to  him  that  it  would  seem  as  if  he  must 


110  THE  LARGER  VISION 

have  gripped  in  all  its  significance  the  meaning 
of  the  words :  "  A  thousand  years  are  but  as 
one  day,  and  one  day  as  a  thousand  years." 
And  when  at  last  the  place  appointed  has  been 
reached,  and  the  little  lad  inquired  of  him: 
"  Father,  the  altar  is  here,  the  wood  for  the 
offering  is  at  hand,  but  where  is  the  offering?  " 
it  must  have  been  like  a  blade  of  anguish  plunged 
into  his  vitals  and  turned  round. 

When  the  lad  was  tied  to  the  altar,  and  his 
hand  held  the  gleaming  blade  raised  to  slay  his 
son  —  and  his  hand  was  paralyzed  a  moment, 
long  enough  for  God  to  indicate  the  real  offer- 
ing yonder,  caught  in  the  thicket  —  I  have 
thought  I  could  see  the  air  growing  heavy  and 
Abraham,  staggering  under  the  awful  strain, 
falling  in  a  swoon  to  the  earth. 

Why  did  God  require  such  a  sacrifice  at  the 
hands  of  mortal  man?  Maybe  you  answer,  "  In 
order  that  he  might  become  '  the  father  of  the 
faithful,'  whose  seed  should  become  '  numerous 
as  the  sands  of  the  seashore.' ' 

Well,  that  may  be  true,  but  I  have  thought 
that  even  more  important  than  this  was  the 
symbol  growing  out  of  the  sacrifice  of  Abraham 
—  the  symbol  of  the  sacrifice  of  the  All-Father 
in  the  offering  of  an  only  begotten  Son  to  die 
for  sinful  man. 

Give  to  imagination  a  free  rein ;  traverse  the 


THE  VICARIOUS  CONTRIBUTION      111 

unknown  ages  lying  between  "  the  beginning  " 
when,  at  the  utterance  of  the  almighty  fiat, 
worlds  trembled  into  being,  and  the  time  when 
the  angelic  choir,  supplemented  by  morning 
stars  dancing  together,  chanted  the  annunci- 
ation song :  "  Glory  to  God  in  the  highest, 
and  on  earth  peace  and  good  will  among  men; 
for  unto  you  this  day  is  born  in  the  city  of 
David,  a  Saviour  which  is  Christ  the  Lord." 
And  as  you  ponder  this  vigil  of  the  ages  and 
the  heartbreak  of  God,  you  will  be  able  to  sing 
as  never  before : 

"  In  the  cross  of  Christ  I  glory, 
Towering  o'er  the  wrecks  of  time; 

All  the  light  of  sacred  story 

Gathers  round  His  head  sublime." 

And  shall  the  church  fail  to  learn  the  signifi- 
cance of  this  sacrificial  offering,  the  value  of 
the  vicarious  contribution? 

An  engineer,  held  in  high  esteem  by  his  em- 
ployers, was  called  upon  one  dark  night  to  make 
a  record  run.  A  strange  presentiment  took  pos- 
session of  him,  causing  him  with  assumed  play- 
fulness to  enter  the  sleeping-chamber  of  his  wife 
and  little  one  four  times  to  hug  and  kiss  them 
good-night. 

With  train  running  sixty  miles  an  hour,  in 
making  a  curve  in  the  road  he  saw  another  train 


THE  LARGER  VISION 

approaching  him  —  a  sleepy  signal  man  had 
erred.  He  might  have  jumped  and  saved  his 
life,  but  did  not  do  so;  whistling  down  brakes 
and  reversing  the  engine,  in  a  moment  the  awful 
crash  came  which  snuffed  out  his  life  —  but  he 
had  saved  the  lives  of  a  hundred  passengers 
asleep  in  Pullman  cars  behind  him. 

And  you  ask,  "  Was  it  necessary  to  make 
such  a  sacrifice?  " 

And  we  answer,  "  If  he  could  not  do  so,  he 
was  unworthy  ever  to  have  pulled  a  throttle." 

Why  should  we  not  expect  to  find  a  similar 
fidelity  in  the  church  of  God? 

A  faithful  minister  of  the  gospel,  who  had 
builded  his  best  talent  into  the  church  he  was 
serving  without  stint,  but  without  avail,  for  an 
indifferent  church  made  impotent  all  his  efforts, 
stood  bravely  at  his  post,  even  when  he  knew 
that  his  physical  and  mental  forces  were  wan- 
ing. By-and-by  that  heartless  church  asked 
for  his  resignation,  that  another  might  take  his 
place.  It  was  the  "  last  straw,"  and  he  stag- 
gered back  into  the  sacred  circle  of  loved  ones 
and  died. 

And  you  ask :  "  Was  it  necessary  for  him  to 
make  such  a  sacrifice  in  the  face  of  such  in- 
difference? " 

And  I  reply :  "  If  he  could  not  do  so,  he  was 
not  worthy  to  stand  as  an  ambassador  of  Him 


THE  VICARIOUS  CONTRIBUTION      113 

6  who  for  the  joy  that  was  set  before  Him 
endured  the  cross,  despising  the  shame,  and  is 
set  down  at  the  right  hand  of  the  throne  of 
God.'  " 

The  vicarious  contribution  at  the  hands  of 
the  man  of  God  and  the  church  at  large  —  this 
is  the  supreme  requirement  requisite  to  hastening 
the  chariot  wheels  of  salvation  and  the  ushering 
in  of  the  millennium. 


THE    SUPREMACY    OF   JESUS    CHRIST 


"  Men  with  empires  in  their  brains." 

— LOWELL. 

"  No  bird  can  race  in  the  great  blue  sky  against 
a  noble  soul/' 

— SWING.     . 

"  All  men  love  Napoleon  because  he  is  them- 
selves in  possibility/' 

— EMERSON. 

"  For  I  determined  not  to  know  anything  among 
you  save  Jesus  Christ  and  Him  crucified." 

— ST.  PAUL. 

"Who  for  the  joy  that  was  set  before  Him  en- 
dured the  cross,  despising  the  shame  and  is  set 
down  at  the  right  hand  of  the  throne  of  God." 

— HEBREWS,  12:2. 


VIII 
THE    SUPREMACY    OF   JESUS    CHRIST 

We  are  all  familiar  with  the  old  adage: 
"  Hitch  your  wagon  to  a  star."  In  terms  of 
derision  a  literalist  has  declared :  "  The  most 
insane  act  of  which  any  man  could  be  guilty 
would  be  the  attempt  to  follow  the  advice  of 
this  adage ;  "  for  said  he,  "  Any  intelligent  man 
knows  that  the  orbs  on  high  .revolve  with  such 
rapidity  as  to  dazzle  the  calculating  mind,  mak- 
ing it  impossible  to  get  within  a  million  miles  of 
hitching  distance  to  a  star,  whilst,  if  by  any 
possibility  of  chance  the  man  should  succeed  in 
hitching  his  wagon  to  a  star,  both  he  and  the 
wagon  would  be  whisked  into  oblivion  in  the 
smallest  possible  fraction  of  a  second." 

Now  it  goes  without  saying  that  such  a  man 
is  unworthy  of  being  reasoned  with  —  that  it 
would  be  a  clear  case  of  "  casting  pearls  before 
swine."  What  is  meant  by  the  adage  is  that,  in 
order  to  obtain  the  largest  success  in  life,  man 
must  have  a  high  ideal  towards  which  he  must 
constantly  press. 

The  man  in  the  legal  world  who  would  make  a 
117 


118  THE  LARGER  VISION 

record  in  his  chosen  profession  must  not  be  con- 
tent to  be  an  ordinary  barrister,  to  get  on  some- 
how, satisfied  if  he  can  keep  the  wolf  from  the 
door ;  he  must  resolve  to  stand  at  the  head  of  his 
profession,  to  earn  $50,000  a  year;  no  matter 
at  what  cost,  to  climb  to  the  topmost  rundle  in 
the  legal  ladder. 

The  man  who  would  accomplish  the  largest 
success  in  the  industrial  world  must  resolve  to 
become  a  captain  of  industry,  to  associate  him- 
self with  leading  spirits  in  the  industrial  world, 
whose  combined  efforts  shall  make  for  "  a 
greater  New  York,"  a  greater  city  —  the  city  in 
which  he  has  elected  to  take  up  his  abode. 

The  world  has  no  patience  with  the  man 
possessed  of  low  ideals  who  is  content  to  eke  out 
a  living;  but  the  world's  heart  is  thrilled  at  the 
sight  of  a  man  in  whose  blood  is  the  iron  of  de- 
termination, and  whose  heart  beats  like  a  trip 
hammer  as  he  engages  in  the  upward  climb. 
Dominated  by  such  impulses,  we  are  not  sur- 
prised at  the  fact  that  men  have  succeeded  in 
wresting  down  the  secrets  of  the  stars,  in  trans- 
forming the  deep  into  a  world  highway  across 
which  may  tramp  ships  of  commerce,  in  encircl- 
ing the  globe,  with  a  thread-like  track  of  wire 
around  which  to  flash  tiny,  invincible  cars  of 
harnessed  lightnings,  binding  and  blending  the 
world  into  a  huge  whispering  gallery  in  which 


SUPREMACY  OF  JESUS  CHRIST     119 

the  inhabitants  of  other  nations  become  our 
next-door  neighbors. 

Nor  have  these  triumphant  achievements  been 
confined  to  the  temporal  world;  actuated  by  a 
similar  impulse,  in  the  spiritual  realm,  bold, 
restless  spirits  have  marched  towards  the  goal 
of  success.  Thus  we  see  Moses  marching  up 
a  flaming  Sinai,  into  the  immediate  presence 
of  the  great  "  I  am  that  I  am,"  receiving  the 
tablets  of  law  at  His  hands  —  the  law  which  has 
formed  the  bases  for  all  law  down  the  centuries. 
We  behold  Abraham,  going  forth  he  knows  not 
whither  at  the  command  of  God,  who  later  be- 
comes known  as  "  the  father  of  the  faithful, 
whose  seed  is  as  numerous  as  the  sands  of  the 
seashore."  We  look  upon  a  Paul,  once  a  big- 
oted, self-centered  pupil,  seated  at  the  feet  of 
Gamaliel,  going  forth  to  persecute  the  disci- 
ples of  Christ,  but  returning  to  write  the  world's 
theology,  establish  the  Christian  church  in  the 
world's  strategic  centers,  and  inaugurate  a 
worldwide  missionary  movement,  becoming  easily 
the  foremost  apostle  of  Jesus  Christ. 

Inquiring  as  to  the  source  of  the  inspiration 
of  such  men  as  the  great  apostle,  we  hear  him 
exclaiming :  "  For  I  determined  not  to  know 
anything  among  you,  save  Jesus  Christ  and  him 
crucified."  To  Paul,  Jesus  Christ  stood  for  the 
highest  and  the  best  in  the  spiritual  realm; 


120  THE  LARGER  VISION 

He  was  the  greatest  among  the  great,  the  no- 
blest among  those  whose  lives  were  dominated 
by  ennobling  principles ;  He  was  not  merely 
the  gulf  stream  of  sympathy,  flowing  humanity- 
ward,  He  was  the  fountain-head  whence  all 
streams  of  sympathy  emanate;  He  was  not 
merely  an  exemplification  of  "  a  love  past  find- 
ing out,"  He  was  love  itself;  He  was  not  only 
a  holy,  mighty  man,  He  was  the  "  holiest  among 
the  mighty,  and  the  mightiest  among  the  holy." 
Paul  could  not  be  satisfied  with  hitching  his 
spiritual  wagon  to  a  star;  he  must  needs  hitch 
his  wagon  to  the  Creator  of  all  the  stars. 

What  an  ideal  for  all  the  children  of  men  to 
become  obsessed  by.  Approaching  a  little 
closer  to  Paul's  ideal,  let  us  in  brief  analysis 
ponder  this  theme  of  themes,  "  The  Supremacy 
of  Jesus  Christ." 

I.    JESUS  A  WORLD  INSTRUCTOR 

And  first  let  us  study  Jesus  in  the  role  of  a 
World  Instructor.  As  such  we  will  do  well  to 
notice  how  He  stressed  the  most  vital  phases  of 
human  life,  always  "  putting  first  things  first." 

He  has  been  called  The  "  Great  Physician," 
not  because  He  gave  himself  up  primarily  to 
the  task  of  healing  the  bodies  of  men.  This  He 
did,  but  always  incidentally,  and  in  response  to 
the  demand  of  the  Oriental  mind  seeking  spec- 


SUPREMACY  OF  JESUS  CHRIST 

tacular  evidence  of  His  divine  character.  In 
order  to  meet  this  demand,  we  find  strewn  all 
along  His  pathway  spectacular  performances. 
On  the  occasion  of  His  advent  into  the  world 
"  the  morning  stars  danced  together,"  whilst 
an  angelic  choir  chanted  the  annunciation  song: 
"  Glory  to  God  in  the  highest,  and  on  earth 
peace  and  good  will  among  men;  for  unto  you 
this  day  is  born  in  the  city  of  David  a  Savior 
which  is  Christ  the  Lord." 

When  formally  inducted  into  office  in  His 
baptism,  a  voice  out  of  a  cloud  was  heard  say- 
ing "  This  is  my  beloved  Son,  hear  Him." 

Five  thousand  people  were  fed  upon  five 
loaves  and  two  fishes,  literally  five  barley 
crackers  and  the  two  dried  herring  which  a 
little  lad  had  brought  as  a  noonday's  snack 
and  had  forgotten  to  eat,  under  the  spell 
which  the  World  Instructor  cast  upon  all  the 
people. 

Reclining  in  a  little  ship  on  the  bosom  of 
storm-tossed  Gennesaret,  in  response  to  the  ap- 
peal of  His  disciples,  saying,  "  Lord,  carest 
thou  not  that  we  perish?  "  He  simply  spake 
to  the  howling  winds  and  roaring  waves,  saying, 
"  Peace,  be  still,"  and  the  winds  and  waves  were 
rocked  to  sleep. 

When  the  outstretched  hand  of  the  woman  in 
the  throng  which  jostled  Him  touched  the  hem 


THE  LARGER  VISION 

of  His  garment,  and  she  was  healed  of  the  issue 
of  blood  of  a  number  of  years'  standing  —  one 
who  had  been  pronounced  an  "  incurable  "  by 
attending  physicians  —  in  feigned  expression 
of  surprise  He  turned  about,  exclaiming: 
"Who  touched  me?" 

When  Roman  soldiers  came  to  arrest  Him 
in  the  Garden  of  Gethsemane,  He  simply  looked 
them  in  the  face  and  they  fell  backward  in  awe 
of  His  power. 

The  most  spectacular  scene  in  all  His  min- 
istry was  witnessed  on  Golgotha  when,  as  He 
gave  up  the  ghost,  rocks  were  jostled  out  of 
their  places,  the  veil  of  the  temple  was  rent  in 
twain,  whilst  the  "  great  orb  of  light,  the  sun, 
wheeled  its  chariot  of  illumination  backward 
from  the  scene,  refusing  to  look  upon  the  sun 
of  righteousness  from  whom  he  had  borrowed 
his  rays  of  light,  sinking  beneath  a  commingled 
horizon  of  darkness,  death  and  blood." 

Spectacular  in  character  were  all  the  mighty 
miracles  performed  by  Him,  furnishing  indis- 
putable evidence  of  the  divine  character  of  their 
Author,  and  —  I  repeat  —  all  of  these  were 
incidental;  the  healing  of  the  sick,  the  curing 
of  the  blind,  the  unstopping  of  the  ears  of  the 
deaf,  and  the  raising  of  the  dead  were  never 
intended  as  proofs  of  His  ability  to  heal  the 
bodies  of  men  and  women  —  the  real  mission  of 


SUPREMACY  OF  JESUS  CHRIST      123 

Jesus  Christ  in  the  earth  was  to  heal  the  souls 
of  men. 

Leaving  a  hospital  one  day  after  visiting  an 
inmate,  I  turned  to  the  attending  physician 
standing  in  the  hall,  and  in  reply  to  my  ques- 
tion he  shook  his  head  sadly,  saying:  "A 
hopeless  case ;  the  medical  world  has  never 
found  a  remedy  for  diseases  like  hers." 

Had  Jesus  seen  fit  thus  to  do,  He  might  have 
drawn  aside  the  curtains  of  mystery,  revealing 
a  cure  for  all  the  ills  of  life,  but  He  did  not 
do  so.  Why?  He  did  not  do  so  because  here 
is  found  the  field  of  operation  of  the  medical 
fraternity,  which  has  made  rapid  strides  in  the 
conquest  of  disease  and  by-and-by  will  be 
masters  of  the  situation ;  Jesus  came  to  work  in 
a  higher  sphere  —  the  sphere  in  which  He  alone 
was  supreme,  hence  His  title,  "  The  Great 
Physician." 

Had  Jesus  seen  fit  thus  to  do,  He  might  have 
thrown  back  the  bolts,  unlocking  all  doors  — 
"  doors  of  oak,  doors  of  iron,  doors  of  brass  '* 
-  revealing  all  the  secrets  belonging  to  the 
scientific  world,  discovering  to  men,  not  in  the 
twentieth  century  but  in  the  first  century,  the 
X-ray,  bloodless  surgery,  wireless  telegraphy, 
the  aeroplane,  radium,  etc.,  whose  introduction 
has  caused  the  characterization  of  the  age  in 
which  we  live  as  "  the  age  of  ages ;  "  more  than 


THE  LARGER  VISION 

that,  He  might  have  given  an  additional  flood 
of  revelation  such  as,  in  future  ages,  should 
convince  the  world  that  the  inhabitants  of  the 
twentieth  century  had  but  reached  the  border- 
land of  ultimate  triumph  in  the  scientific  world, 
but  He  did  not  do  so.  Why?  He  did  not  do 
so  because  herein  lies  the  legitimate  sphere  of 
men  whose  task  is  the  accomplishment  of  these 
triumphs;  His  work  lay  in  a  higher  realm  — 
the  spiritual  realm  —  and  He  adhered  strictly 
to  His  task. 

Superior  to  wireless  telegraphy,  through  the 
use  of  which  the  White  Star  Liner,  disabled  on 
the  high  seas,  whispered  out  through  the  black- 
ness of  the  night  and  across  the  tempest-tossed 
waves  the  story  of  her  mishap,  and  other 
vessels  several  hundreds  of  miles  distant  whis- 
pered back  that,  as  fast  as  steam  power  could 
bear  them,  they  were  on  their  way  to  succor 
her,  was  that  revelation  of  a  medium  of  com- 
munication, through  which  a  lost  world  may 
whisper  up  in  the  ear  of  God  the  story  of  their 
helpless  estate,  and  the  great  God  may  whisper 
back  messages  of  help  and  hope  and  heaven. 

Outrivaling  radium,  a  single  speck  of  which 
is  more  powerful  than  a  ten  thousand  horse- 
power derrick,  was  the  revelation  of  spiritual 
power  destined  to  "  bind  the  whole  round  earth 
in  chains  of  gold  about  the  feet  of  God." 


SUPREMACY  OF  JESUS  CHRIST     125 

Of  greater  penetration  than  the  X-ray, 
which  locates  any  foreign  substance  lodged  in 
the  human  body,  was  the  revelation  of  that  all- 
seeing  eye  which  looks  down  into  the  human 
heart,  discerning  the  secret  motives  of  all  men 
everywhere. 

As  a  World  Instructor  Christ  came  to  deal 
with  the  great  eternal  truths  —  God,  the  soul, 
a  boundless  heaven  and  a  fathomless  hell  — 
truths  with  which  He  alone  was  competent  to 
deal. 

II.     THE  SUPREMACY  OF  THE  GOSPEL  OF 
CHRIST 

Not  only  was  Christ  supreme  as  a  World 
Instructor.  He  came  to  invest  His  church 
with  a  gospel  which  should  be  supreme,  meet- 
ing every  exigency  of  life  and  experience,  sav- 
ing to  the  uttermost  all  who  come  to  Him  by 
faith. 

Somewhere  I  have  found  this  beautiful  and 
forcible  illustration,  touching  the  supremacy 
of  the  gospel  of  Christ: 

"  When  Mahomet  sees  a  soul  lying  at  the  foot 
of  the  hill  of  difficulty,  he  exclaims,  '  It  is  the  will 
of  Allah/ 

"  When  Buddha  sees  a  soul  lying  at  the  foot  of 
the  hill  of  difficulty,  gazing  wistfully  towards  the 
temple  Beautiful  surmounting  the  top  of  the  hill, 


126  THE  LARGER  VISION 

he  says,  '  When  you  have  passed  through  a  thou- 
sand incarnations  you  may  begin  to  climb  the  hill 
of  difficulty  towards  the  temple  Beautiful.' 

"  When  Confucius  sees  a  soul  lying  at  the  foot 
of  the  hill  of  difficulty  he  says,  '  If  I  had  seen  you 
ere  you  fell,  I  could  have  told  you  how  to  keep 
from  falling  down  the  hill.' 

"  But  when  Christ  sees  a  soul  at  the  foot  of  the 
hill  of  difficulty,  He  hastens  down  the  hill,  throws 
the  arms  of  infinite  love  about  that  one,  bears 
him  to  the  top  of  the  hill  of  difficulty,  and  together 
they  enter  the  temple  Beautiful,  the  man  '  leaping 
and  walking  and  praising  God.'  ' 

Dr.  Dawson,  in  "  The  Evangelistic  Note," 
tells  of  a  twofold  vision  of  the  human  soul.  He 
says :  "  There  is  what  is  known  as  the  micro- 
scopic vision  of  human  life,  and  there  is  what 
is  known  as  the  telescopic  vision." 

Looking  through  the  microscope  the  pessi- 
mistic soul  sees  frailty,  mistakes,  follies,  etc., 
and  cries  out,  "  That  is  man."  And  so  it  is, 
for  who  is  not  conscious  of  frailty  —  does  not 
know  that  man  is  "  as  the  grass  of  the  field, 
which  in  the  morning  groweth  up  and  flour- 
isheth,  and  in  the  evening  is  cut  down  and  with- 
ereth."  Who  among  us  is  not  conscious  of 
mistakes  and  failures  and  human  follies?  But 
now  let  us  look  through  the  telescope  —  get  the 
telescopic  vision  of  a  human  soul ;  and  we  "  see 


SUPREMACY  OF  JESUS  CHRIST 

man  in  relation  to  the  stars,  to  the  immensity 
of  space,  to  the  music  of  the  spheres." 

Note  the  application  of  the  gospel  of 
supremacy  in  the  lives  of  men  in  the  time  of 
Christ.  See  John,  originally  a  veritable  Boan- 
erges, a  son  of  thunder;  under  the  impact  of 
the  influence  of  the  gospel  of  Christ,  John  be- 
comes transformed  into  a  type  of  clinging  ten- 
derness — •"  the  disciple  whom  Jesus  loved." 

Behold  Peter,  the  vacillating  disciple,  im- 
pulsive, unreliable,  always  getting  into  trouble 
himself  and  dragging  other  people  into  trouble 
through  his  rash  words  and  deeds.  See  him 
over  yonder  in  the  testing  time  denying  his 
Lord  thrice,  with  a  bitter  oath  upon  his  lips, 
saying,  "  I  never  knew  the  man."  But  a  little 
later  see  Peter,  for  there  is  such  a  thing  as 
Peter  in  possibility;  and  now  he  has  become 
possessed  of  an  oaken  character,  firm  as  a  rock, 
whose  faith  in  the  Christ,  the  Master  declares 
shall  form  the  foundation  of  His  church,  against 
which  not  even  the  gates  of  hell  shall  prevail. 

Look  upon  the  woman  taken  in  an  unnamable 
sin,  upon  whom  the  world  turns  its  back,  hypo- 
critical society  looks  askance,  and  from  whom 
even  the  church  turns  away,  crying  out :  "  Un- 
clean, unclean,  away  with  her,  away  with  her." 
But  under  the  impact  with  the  gospel  of  Christ 
—  for  the  Christ  looked  down  beneath  the  sur- 


128  THE  LARGER  VISION 

face,  beneath  her  sin  and  shame,  and  beheld 
His  own  image,  marred  by  transgression,  but 
still  His  image  —  under  the  impact  of  the 
gospel  of  Christ  she  becomes  uplifted  out  of 
self  and  sin  and  the  world  into  fellowship  and 
communion  with  Himself,  a  jewel  destined  to 
adorn  His  crown  of  rejoicing. 

Really  great  souls  are  ever  held  in  the  grip 
of  a  mighty  sweep  of  vision.  Having  crossed 
the  Rubicon,  Caesar  sent  to  his  home  congress 
the  graphic  message :  i(  Veni,  vidi,  vici  —  I 
came,  I  saw,  I  conquered."  This  was  but  the 
first  milestone  in  the  journey;  a  little  later,  as 
the  head  of  a  powerful  triumvirate,  Caesar 
shall  sway  the  scepter  of  supremacy  over  the 
mighty  Roman  empire,  and  dream  of  the  time 
when  he  shall  occupy  a  place  among  the  gods, 
and  enjoy  the  perpetual  worship  of  the  citizens 
at  Rome. 

The  dream  of  Caesar  was  never  fulfilled  be- 
cause it  was  actuated  by  self-centered  motives. 
But  the  unselfish  dream  of  the  Galilean,  the 
Author  of  the  gospel  of  supremacy,  is  being 
fulfilled :  "  He  shall  not  fail  nor  be  discour- 
aged till  He  hath  set  judgment  in  the  earth, 
and  the  isles  shall  wait  for  His  law." 

In  the  days  when  Spain  had  reached  suprem- 
acy among  the  nations  of  the  earth,  having 
become  possessed  of  the  Gibraltar,  in  a  moment 


SUPREMACY  OF  JESUS  CHRIST 

of  triumph  she  caused  to  be  inscribed  within  a 
scroll  on  her  national  coins  the  words,  "  Ne 
plus  ultra  —  no  more  beyond."  But  after  one 
of  her  own  sons,  Columbus,  discovered  America, 
destined  to  become  the  greatest  republic  be- 
neath the  sun,  in  humiliation  Spain  was  com- 
pelled to  strike  the  negation  from  her  coins, 
leaving  the  more  significant  declaration: 
"  Plus  ultra  —  more  beyond,  more  beyond." 

In  like  manner  the  foes  of  the  glorious  gospel 
of  the  Son  of  God  have  again  and  again 
imagined  they  have  erected  a  veritable  Gib- 
raltar of  opposition  to  the  further  progress  of 
the  chariot  of  salvation,  and  in  tones  of  tri- 
umph have  cried  out :  "  Ne  plus  ultra  —  no 
more  beyond."  But  the  chariot  of  salvation 
has  moved  steadily  forward,  and  by-and-by  the 
redeemed  of  the  Lord  shall  look  upon  the  eternal 
city  —  shall  feast  their  eyes  upon  the  vision 
of  an  unending  progression,  and  shall  shout  in 
tones  of  triumph :  "  More  beyond,  more  be- 
yond." 

"  Jesus  shall  reign  where'er  the  sun,  does  His 

successive  journeys  run; 

His    kingdom    spread    from    shore    to    shore,    till 
moons  shall  wax  and  wane  no  more." 

The  supremacy  of  the  gospel,  THE  SUPREM- 
ACY OF  GOSPEL. 


"  THE  LAND  OF  ROOM  ENOUGH  " 


"  Jesus   shall  reign  where'er  the  sun, 
Does  his  successive  journeys  run; 
His  kingdom  spread  from  shore  to  shore, 
Till  moons  shall  wax  and  wane  no  more." 

"  America  is  but  another  name  for  opportunity, 
whose  whole  history  seems  to  be  a  last  effort  of  a 
divine  providence  in  behalf  of  the  human  race." 

—  EMERSON. 

"  When  Spain  came  into  possession  of  the  Gib- 
raltar, in  a  moment  of  triumph  she  caused  to  be 
inscribed  on  her  coins  the  words  '  Ne  plus  ultra  — 
no  more  beyond  ' ;  but  when  the  bold  explorer  dis- 
covered the  new  world,  in  humiliation  she  was 
compelled  to  strike  from  her  coin  the  negation, 
leaving  instead  the  more  significant  declaration 
'  Plus  ultra  —  more  beyond.'  ' 

—  ANON. 

"  Thou  hast  set  my  feet  in  a  large  room." 

—  PSALM,  31:8. 


IX 

"  THE  LAND  OF  ROOM  ENOUGH  " 

It  had  been  a  glorious  journey  from  start  to 
finish  —  a  j  ourney  under  ten  flags  —  riding 
in  the  heart  of  the  deep  for  more  than  14,000 
miles,  penetrating  the  domain  of  historic  centers, 
enthralled  by  the  glamour  of  cities  whose  ruins 
are  suggestive  of  former  greatness,  learning 
perfectly  "  the  sign  language,"  that  we  might 
converse  with  heterogeneous  peoples,  and  becom- 
ing possessed  of  an  enriched  experience  obtain- 
able only  when  "  on  the  wing  of  travel." 

To  be  sure,  we  had  not  failed  to  tarry  at 
Rome,  once  the  center  of  the  world's  political 
power;  at  Athens,  the  former  center  of  intel- 
lectual power;  at  Egypt,  the  home  of  the  Pha- 
raohs, the  great  Sphinx  and  pyramids  —  not 
to  speak  of  the  Nile  —  of  Palestine,  that  little 
strip  of  mountainous  country  that  could  easily 
be  lost  in  the  mountain  fastnesses  of  some  of 
our  great  states,  but  whose  atmosphere  is 
changed  with  historic  interest  found  nowhere 
else  in  the  whole  world,  whose  climax  of  interest 
centers  in  the  fact  that  here  was  the  home  of 
133 


THE  LARGER  VISION 

the  lowly  Nazarene,  the  world's  Redeemer  and 
Friend. 

And  yet,  we  were  glad  to  get  back  home ;  for 
had  we  not  lingered  in  streets  narrow,  and 
reeking  with  filth,  the  streets  of  Oriental  cities ; 
mingled  with  denizens  whose  appearance  was 
more  than  synonymous  with  squalor,  wretched- 
ness, poverty;  been  brought  painfully  in  touch 
with  the  hated  system  called  "  caste,"  so 
sharply  in  contrast  with  the  spirit  of  democracy 
of  our  own  God-blessed  land;  so  that  when  our 
vessel,  "  S.  S.  Baltic,"  steamed  into  the  harbor 
of  New  York  after  an  absence  of  several  months, 
and  we  caught  sight  of  the  stars  and  stripes 
and  the  Statue  of  Liberty,  though  it  was  Sab- 
bath morning,  you  ought  to  have  heard  us 
shout. 

No,  we  were  not  all  Methodists  —  the  Metho- 
dists were  in  the  minority  for  once;  and  the 
staid  followers  of  John  Calvin,  and  the  con- 
servative representatives  of  New  England,  the 
Congregationalists,  the  good  friends  who 
claimed  affiliation  with  the  Episcopalian  and 
Baptist  faiths,  were  equally  enthusiastic  with 
the  followers  of  John  Wesley,  who  from  the 
cradle  to  the  grave  are  supposed  to  be  familiar 
with  the  spirit  of  vociferation  —  all,  in  one 
long,  continued  shout  that  must  have  made  old 
Boreas  hide  his  face  behind  his  wings,  the  wind, 


"  THE  LAND  OF  ROOM  ENOUGH  "     1&5 

with  envy,  joined  in  giving  expression  to  their 
joy  of  home-coming.  And  we  better  appreci- 
ated the  language  of  good  Dr.  Van  Dyke,  whose 
words  suggested  our  theme: 

"  Oh,  its  home  again,  home  again,  home  again  for 

me, 

My  heart  is  turning  home  again,  to  God's  coun- 
try; 
To  the  blessed  land  of  room  enough  beyond  the 

ocean  bars, 

Where  the  air  is  full  of  sunlight  and  the  flag  is 
full  of  stars." 

By  our  firesides  through  the  years  to  our 
children  and  children's  children  will  we  engage 
in  the  pleasant  pastime  of  regaling  our  ex- 
perience abroad,  not  failing  ever  to  observe  the 
law  of  contrast,  or  the  law  of  association 
of  thought  which  the  psalmist  must  have 
had  in  mind  when,  in  speaking  of  the  rich 
heritage,  temporal  and  spiritual,  into  which 
he  and  his  people  had  come,  he  said :  "  He 
brought  me  forth  into  a  large  place." 

I.    EXPANSION  THE  LAW  OF  BEING 

Among  all  the  inspiring  lessons  to  be  learned 
by  man  there  is  none  possessed  of  greater  worth 
than  that  in  which  he  beholds  the  index  finger 
o;f  rightful  authority  pointing  at  him,  pro- 


136  THE  LARGER  VISION 

claiming  the  sublime  truth  that  expansion  is 
the  law  of  being.  No  matter  how  profound 
the  subject  matter  under  discussion,  or  how 
much  of  erudition  is  possessed  by  the  expositor 
of  the  truth  at  hand,  the  world  has  ever  grown 
weary  of  any  argument  which  is  "  in  a  circle," 
whose  horizon  is  circumscribed,  whose  point  of 
destination  is  never  lost  sight  of,  being  near  at 
hand. 

On  the  other  hand,  how  the  world's  heart  be- 
comes enthralled  by  the  argwmentum  ad 
hominem  whose  sweep  of  vision  is  great,  whose 
field  of  investigation  is  limitless  in  scope,  and 
in  which,  though  the  world  becomes  enriched 
beyond  compare  as  a  result  of  principles  mas- 
tered and  applied,  it  is  constantly  reminded  of 
the  picture  of  the  great  philosopher  standing 
on  the  seashore  picking  up  the  pebbles  of  in- 
formation —  conscious  of  the  fact  that  the 
boundless  deep  of  further  knowledge  in  endless 
sweep  lies  beyond  him. 

How  the  world's  heart  has  become  pained  — 
an  expression  of  disappointment  overspreading 
the  faces  of  thoughtful,  intelligent  men  as  they 
have  listened  to  a  man  possessed  of  the  eru- 
dition of  a  Huxley  saying :  "  If  I  could  be 
wound  up  like  an  automaton  and  always  keep 
going,  without  weariness,  always  doing  the 


"  THE  LAND  OF  ROOM  ENOUGH  "    137 

right  thing,  I  would  gladly  surrender  every 
pleasure  in  life." 

What  a  fascinating  story  is  that  growing  out 
of  the  history  of  the  labor-saving  devices  intro- 
duced by  the  world's  inventive  genius!  What 
a  boon  to  the  world  at  large  was  the  introduc- 
tion of  the  printing  press,  whose  leaves  of  in- 
formation, like  so  many  autumn  leaves,  are 
found  falling  all  about  us,  keeping  us  in  touch 
with  the  trend  of  human  affairs !  Prior  to  the 
introduction  of  this  agency,  the  world  consisted 
of  one  great  community  of  strangers  —  I  say 
strangers,  since  space  was  an  isolation  of  com- 
munities, cities  and  nations  from  each  other. 
Two  cities  a  hundred  miles  apart  in  former 
times  possessed  habits  and  customs  wholly  un- 
known to  each  other.  Under  such  existing 
circumstances  but  little  progress  could  be  made. 

How  different  to-day.  This  morning  an 
event  of  importance  has  transpired  in  a  distant 
land;  to-morrow  morning,  or  better  still,  this 
evening,  we  will  read  a  full  account  of  it  in  the 
associated  press  dispatches  —  for  the  news- 
gatherer  of  this  age  is  well-nigh  omnipresent. 
And  yet,  who  would  become  transformed  into  a 
printing  press,  even  with  the  prospect  of  becom- 
ing a  world  wide  dispenser  of  useful  inform- 
ation? Who  would  be  satisfied  to  become  a 


138  THE  LARGER  VISION 

mere  automaton,  a  machine  dominated  by  an- 
other mind? 

To  me  there  is  a  perfect  fascination  growing 
out  of  the  modern  engine.  I  love  to  stand  be- 
side one  of  these;  to  feel  its  hot  breath  upon 
my  cheek ;  to  hear  its  pulsating  heart  throbbing 
with  anxiety  to  be  off  on  its  journey,  sugges- 
tive of  the  great  heart  gripping  great  truths, 
longing  to  give  expression  to  the  truths, 
furnishing  an  impetus  to  nobler  living  on  the 
part  of  his  fellows. 

To  be  sure,  we  can  conceive  of  an  engine 
so  perfectly  constructed  as  to  work  with  clock- 
like  regularity,  never  growing  weary  on  the 
longest  journey,  the  expansion  of  whose  lungs 
of  steel  sends  the  iron  horse  thundering  out 
across  the  plains,  and  the  ocean  steamer  plow- 
ing through  the  waves  of  the  deep,  causing  the 
heart  of  the  engineer  gripping  the  throttle  to 
beat  with  delight,  knowing  that  his  train  —  his 
vessel  —  will  arrive  at  its  destination  on  time. 
And  yet,  who  is  there  who  would  exchange 
places  with  the  most  perfect  engine  in  the 
world;  who  would  not  prefer  to  be  any  form  of 
creeping,  walking,  flying,  swimming  animal  of 
earth  or  sea  or  sky,  rather  than  to  be  turned 
into  an  engine,  a  mere  piece  of  machinery  con- 
trolled always  by  the  will  of  another? 

The  sublimest  phase  of  the  Creator's  design 


"  THE  LAND  OF  ROOM  ENOUGH  "     139 

is  that  in  which  we  witness  man,  "  the  proud 
lord  of  creation,"  the  crowning  feature  of  in- 
finite genius,  endowed  with  freedom  of  the  will; 
who  breathes  the  air  of  freedom,  walks  the 
earth  untrammeled  —  reverently  speaking,  con- 
scious of  the  fact  that  even  God  Himself  would 
not  dare  to  coerce  him  to  action  against  his 
own  will. 

Forward,  onward,  upward;  delving  deeper, 
soaring  higher,  expanding,  progressing,  ever 
moving  towards  the  goal ;  with  pathway  flooded 
by  divine  inspiration  if  he  will;  with  guardian 
angels,  "  horses  and  chariots,"  of  protection 
all  about  him,  if  he  will;  the  unseen  forces  of 
infinite  wisdom,  knowledge  and  power  at  his 
disposal,  if  he  will  —  but  ever  and  always 
exercising  his  sovereign  will  as  a  free  moral 
agent. 

I  repeat,  it  is  the  law  of  being  to  expand. 
The  seed  grows  into  a  California  tree  from 
twenty-five  to  thirty-three  feet  in  diameter;  the 
cell  expands  into  a  lion,  the  king  of  beasts ;  the 
ovum  is  hatched  into  an  eagle,  whose  home  is 
among  the  clouds. 

In  like  manner  man  develops  in  physical 
powers,  in  intellectual  powers  and  in  spiritual 
possibilities.  "  Man  is  the  questioner  of  the 
ages  —  the  first  flash  of  his  eye  is  an  interro- 
gation point.  He  chases  microscopic  atoms 


140  THE  LARGER  VISION 

back  through  crucial  fires  to  test  their  genesis, 
pursues  them  up  through  eternity  to  find  their 
end ;  is  bold  enough  to  press  up  to  the  very 
throne  of  the  Infinite  and  demand  his  right  to 
be,  the  secret  of  his  purpose,  the  meaning  and 
outcome  of  his  plan  —  a  mote  of  yesterday,  he 
commands  the  universe  to  answer  him,"  and  the 
universe  obeys. 

II.    PROVISION  FOR  THE  JOURNEY 

In  making  the  journey  to  "  the  land  of  room 
enough,"  it  is  well  for  the  soul  to  ponder  the 
provision  made  for  the  same. 

The  naturalist  finds  an  interesting  pastime 
in  noting  the  provision  made  for  the  journey 
extending  from  the  seed  to  the  full-blown 
flower ;  from  the  acorn  to  the  oak ;  from  the 
cocoon  to  the  gossamer  wings  of  the  butterfly 
floating  upon  the  air. 

Who  is  responsible  for  this  provision? 
There  is  but  one  answer  —  God.  God  back 
of  the  seed,  hence  the  beauty  and  fragrance  of 
the  flower;  God  back  of  the  acorn,  hence  the 
oak;  God  back  of  the  cocoon,  hence  the  butter- 
fly. Is  it  unnatural,  therefore,  to  suppose  that 
back  of  and  responsible  for  the  development  of 
every  faculty  of  the  soul  in  the  journey  to  the 
land  of  room  enough  is  God? 

God  meant  that  man  should  harness  the  light- 


"  THE  LAND  OF  ROOM  ENOUGH  " 

nings,  hence  the  clouds  have  been  charged  with 
electricity  from  the  beginning.  God  meant  that 
man  should  find  physical  sustenance,  hence  the 
fertility  of  the  soils.  God  meant  that  man 
should  send  ships  of  commerce  tramping  round 
the  world,  hence  the  highways  of  the  deep.  He 
meant  that  man  should  develop  the  aesthetic 
taste,  hence  the  landscapes  of  beauty  —  spread 
out  for  him  to  copy  in  producing  his  master- 
pieces ;  hence  the  music  of  the  spheres  from 
which  man  has  borrowed  his  material  for  great 
oratorios ;  hence  the  materials  at  hand  from 
which  to  write  immortal  dramas. 

God  meant  that  man  should  have  aspirations 
reaching  unto  the  highest  heaven,  hence  the 
inducement  of  immortal  capacity. 

God  saw  the  exigency  of  the  fall  of  man, 
hence  the  provision  of  grace  which  impover- 
ished heaven  for  the  enrichment  of  earth  — 
grace  which  is  high  as  heaven,  deep  as  hell  and 
broad  as  the  need  of  humankind. 

The  tourist  who  contemplates  making  a  jour- 
ney across  the  sea  does  not  make  selection  of 
a  tugboat;  rather  does  he  select  a  great  ocean 
liner,  with  all  the  comforts  and  conveniences 
of  the  modern  manse.  Not  satisfied  with  pro- 
viding for  the  personal  comfort  of  passengers, 
the  owners  of  great  liners  have  installed  wire- 
less telegraphy,  enabling  the  captains  of  in- 


THE  LARGER  VISION 

dustry  to  keep  in  touch  with  vast  business  in- 
terests in  the  interim. 

But,  oh,  that  ampler  provision  in  the  shape 
of  "  the  old  ship  of  Zion,"  on  which  the  soul 
finds  all  that  is  requisite  to  peace  of  mind,  joy 
of  heart  and  contentment  of  life  —  a  full  as- 
surance of  a  "  bon  voyage  "  all  the  way ;  whilst 
on  the  way  provision  has  been  made  whereby 
the  soul  may  whisper  up  in  the  ear  of  God  the 
story  of  his  need,  and  have  whispered  back' to 
him  answers  of  peace  and  joy,  the  medium  of 
communication  being  open  and  unobstructed 
by  night  and  by  day. 

One  of  the  first  considerations  in  connection 
with  an  ocean  voyage  is  that  of  securing  proper 
passports  bearing  the  seal  of  the  country  from 
which  one  sails  and  the  seal  of  the  country 
for  which  he  is  bound. 

In  like  manner  the  soul,  journeying  to  "  the 
land  of  room  enough,"  must  needs  have  a  pass- 
port bearing  the  seal  of  the  kingdom  of  grace 
here  and  the  seal  of  the  kingdom  of  glory  yon- 
der ;  hence  it  is  that  "  God  hath  set  eternity 
in  the  heart."  "  And  this  is  life  eternal  to 
know  God  and  Jesus  Christ  whom  Thou  hast 
sent  into  the  world." 

Witness,  then,  the  declaration  of  the  noted 
voyager,  the  apostle  Paul,  as  he  cries  out: 
"  There  is  therefore  now  no  condemnation  " — 


"  THE  LAND  OF  ROOM  ENOUGH  "    143 

no  disqualifying  clause  — "  to  them  which  are 
in  Christ  Jesus,  who  walk  not  after  the  flesh, 
but  after  the  spirit."  Witness  also  his  declar- 
ation touching  an  entrance  into  the  life  be- 
yond :  "  For  here  we  have  no  continuing  city, 
but  we  seek  one  to  come." 

Prior  to  entering  upon  the  journey  to  a 
distant  land,  the  tourist  avails  himself  of  the 
mediums  of  information  concerning  the  country 
to  which  he  would  go;  consults  those  who  have 
made  the  journey,  familiarizes  himself  with 
Baedeker,  etc.,  getting  all  the  information  pos- 
sible in  advance. 

Note  then  the  ample  sources  of  information 
relative  to  "  the  land  of  room  enough."  The 
most  reliable  source  of  information  on  this 
point  is  contained  in  the  declaration  of  the 
Master  Himself :  "  I  go  to  prepare  a  place 
for  you,  that  where  I  am  there  ye  may  be 
also." 

Is  not  this  sufficient  warrant  of  the  ample 
provision  for  the  soul  in  the  land  beyond  the 
stars?  If  He  has  gone  to  prepare  a  place  for 
us,  that  ought  to  suffice.  If  He  who  prepared 
our  world  home,  "  whose  channels  are  paved 
with  diamonds,  whose  banks  are  fringed  with 
flowers,  around  which  (as  a  background)  are 
spread  suns,  moons,  worlds,  constellations, 
systems ;  all  that  is  sublime  in  magnitude,  all 


144  THE  LARGER  VISION 

that  is  magnificent  in  motion,  and  all  that  is 
grand  in  order  and  obedience," —  what  will  be 
the  character  of  our  eternal  home? 

And  yet,  as  if  this  were  not  enough,  there  is 
given  to  the  soul  the  prerogative  of  having  "  a 
foretaste  of  heaven."  On  the  wings  of  faith 
he  may  rise  above  this  mundane  sphere;  up 
and  on  up  he  may  soar  until  he  has  reached  the 
sunlit  summit  of  the  heights  of  ineffable  glory 
where,  gazing  upon  the  panoramic  vision 
spread  out  before  him,  he  may  exclaim :  "  Here 
is  my  home  —  here,  when  the  tabernacle  of  clay 
is  dissolved,  I  shall  find  a  building  of  God,  an 
house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the 
heavens." 

III.     A  CONCLUDING  REFLECTION 

Suppose  the  soul  should  fail  to  reach  "  the 
land  of  room  enough ;  "  should  become  so  en- 
grossed in  the  things  of  time  and  sense  as  to 
fail  to  make  preparation  for  that  other  and 
larger  life  —  what  then  ? 

"  See  yonder  astronomer  gazing  through  the 
telescope  upon  a  distant  star  —  the  star  is  five 
hundred  times  as  large  as  our  earth;  but  the 
biggest  star  in  the  universe  of  God  is  the  man 
looking  through  the  telescope." 

After  the  last  star  has  fallen  asleep,  the  blue 
scroll  of  the  heaven  having  been  folded  together 


"  THE  LAND  OF  ROOM  ENOUGH  "  145 

and  rolled  away ;  "  after  the  death  angel  shall 
have  flown  from  world  to  world,  pausing  long 
enough  over  the  wreck  of  time  and  sense  to 
murmur,  '  Ashes  to  ashes,  dust  to  dust,'  "  man 
shall  live  on,  being  possessed  of  immortal  capa- 
city and  destined  to  live  forever. 

Suppose,  after  all  the  provision  which  has 
been  made  for  the  journey,  man  should  fail  to 
reach  the  land  "  where  the  flowers  bloom  for- 
ever and  the  sun  is  always  bright."  And  sup- 
pose that  out  yonder,  just  beyond  the  range  of 
vision  in  the  twilight  of  memory,  the  soul  should 
be  found,  longing  for  just  one  look  into  the 
faces  of  "  those  whom  he  has  loved  and  lost  " 
— not  awhile  —  but  forever  longing  for  just  one 
glimpse  of  "  the  land  of  room  enough,"  and 
longing  for  the  privilege  of  listening  to  the 
music  of  the  immortal  choirs  —  but  longing  in 
vain  —  what  then  ? 

Out  yonder  —  I  will  not  use  the  harsh  word 
hell,  rather  let  me  say  on  the  isle  of  memory 

—  cut  off  from  God  and  heaven  and  eternal 
life  to  linger  through  eternal  years,   recalling 
that  all  that  belongs  to  yonder  world  of  life  and 
light  might  have  been  his,  and  are  lost  to  him 

—  that  would  be  hell  enough  for  any  man  — 
alone,  and  yet  not  alone,  for  memory,  memory, 
MEMORY,   as   an   accusing  agent,   shall  ever  be 
with  him: 


146  THE  LARGER  VISION 

"  Of  all  sad  thoughts  of  voice  or  pen, 
The  saddest  is  this,  it  might  have  been." 

Oh,  soul,  hear  and  heed  this  message  falling 
from  the  lips  of  the  great  Teacher  of  men: 
"  For  what  shall  it  profit  a  man  if  he  shall  gain 
the  whole  world  and  lose  his  own  soul ;  or  what 
shall  a  man  give  in  exchange  for  his  soul  ?  " 

"  The  land  of  room  enough  "  with  its  crown 
of  life  is  held  out  to  thee ;  do  not  miss  thy 
crown  —  DO  NOT  MISS  THY  CROWN. 


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